One Thousand Paper Cranes
by Asami-chann
Summary: It could be anything between a few days and twenty years, but your brother – Eiji-kun – is going to die." EijiOC, Dream friendship. Complete
1. Prologue

**One Thousand Paper Cranes**

Not it sight, but not out of mind.  
Your presence in person guided us,  
and your dreams shall continue to inspire many.  
For you lived for everyone around you  
when times were almost impossible  
Through thick and thin,  
You never gave anything but your best.

That's why, my friend,  
You may be gone from sight  
But you are not gone from my heart  
You shall not age like we do  
and you shall never fear what we must fear.  
Every day you shall live on deep inside of me  
and everyone you have met  
Giving them hope

Please never fear  
You will never be forgotten, my friend.

Please never give up  
You are always in my heart.

--

The paper folded over gently and slipped back into the album, where it belonged. It had been there for a very long time and the album was beginning to get dusty. He blew the dust away as he took out a particular picture, his best friend smiling brightly.

Yes, he would always be by his side.


	2. Forty Paper Cranes

**One Thousand Paper Cranes**

"Poor Rika-chan. Her grandpa was the nicest, most generous man in the world. It's a shame he got lung cancer…"

Eiji sat in his classroom, toying with a spare paper crane in his fingers. They had been making them for Rika's grandfather and reached one thousand just as Eiji finished his last crane. He decided to keep it, something about how fragile and beautiful it was. Everyone had tuned out by that stage to hear Eiji say anything.

"Eiji, look!" Fuji smiled, holding an origami cat made of some old notes. It had drawn on patches of black like a patchy coloured cat.

"Hm?" Eiji asked. He had never really known Rika's grandfather but her grandfather was all that he could think about. "I'm sorry, Fujiko. I can't seem to concentrate on anything today."

Fuji's smile faded a little for a few moments, but he continued distracting Eiji from class further. "Saa… aren't the final rounds of the Tokyo Prefectural Tournament coming up?"

Eiji tried to pay attention to Fuji, he really did, but he couldn't. Before he realised, it was lunch break and everybody was leaving the classroom. He got up and felt his chest tighten again. His breath hitched for a second but eased as he released the air in his lungs.

"Jaa, I'll meet you with the others, okay?" Fuji said as he straightened his books and left for his locker. It was in a whole different are to Eiji's. The lockers were alphabetical and 'ki' was twenty one Japanese letters before 'fu'.

"Kikumaru-kun, please shut the door when you leave the room?" Nakamura sensei asked as he left the room.

Eiji nodded as his chest tightened again. Taking in breaths became difficult. "Sensei…" The teacher was too far away to hear Eiji's struggled gasp. He put his hand to his chest as he tried to sit on his chair. He slipped back, his eyes shutting as he felt the corner of the desk on his head.

-One Paper Crane-

"Where is he?"

Momo rubbed the back of his head. "Where is Eiji-senpai? We can't find him anywhere." He sighed as Fuji dragged Tezuka along. Fuji wouldn't let Tezuka waste his time on unnecessary things – like staring down troublemakers – when Eiji needed to be found.

"Here's the classroom," Fuji said. He went to grab the door. "Ah, the door's not shut."

Momo walked in loudly like he usually did. "Eiji-senpai! Are you in here?" He stopped frozen in the middle of the room.

"What's wrong Momo?" Fuji asked. He looked at the desks. "Eiji's stuff is still here… and it's a mess. It's never a mess."

"Fuji-senpai, Tezuka-buchou, I'm going to get the nurse," Momo said as he stepped toward the door.

Tezuka caught on quite quickly. He calmly walked up to where Eiji lay on the floor. He had fallen; bodies – even if it was Eiji – could never find his mangled position comfortable or possible while they could still feel the stretch of their muscles. He used the little knowledge of first aid he knew. Fuji was in a restricted panic.

"Momoshiro, hurry. He's not breathing correctly," Tezuka instructed and Momo ran at top speed. Tezuka noticed Eiji's pale skin. His lips were turning blue, which meant there was very little if not no blood reaching his face. Alternatively, it could have been a sign that Eiji's heart had stopped beating. How Tezuka hoped that it was the first possibility. Tezuka checked and found a weak pulse at least. Eiji wasn't dead. Yet. _'What did Oishi and Ryuuzaki-sensei did when someone fainted last year?' "_Fuji, get me a chair," Tezuka said, recalling the memory of one of the graduates from last year fainting on a really hot summer's day.

Fuji complied. "Here." Tezuka signalled for Fuji to sit on the floor and hold Eiji still as Tezuka propped up Eiji's legs so blood would reach his head, not his toes. Fuji held Eiji's legs in places as Tezuka rolled Eiji so his spine was straight and he was on his back. That was all Tezuka knew; now they had to wait.

-Five Paper Cranes-

"Get out of my way!"

Momo pushed open the nurse's office door and almost fell into the room.

"Hm?" Nurse Kobayashi asked. "Please close the door and knock before you come in. Be polite!" The middle aged woman looked at her notebooks carefully. She looked rather average. Average height, average build, average dark hair, average dark eyes. She was merely unique in the way she used her average-ness.

"Nurse Koba-"

"Uh, uh, uh. Close the door and knock first please," she corrected again. She was strict on manners. After all, she too was a mother and had learned that you need to teach your child/children to respect others.

"Nurse Kobayashi, Eiji-senpai is unconscious!" Momo shouted over Nurse Kobayashi as she tried to protest again. It was unbelievably disrespectful but she wasn't going to listen to him. He _needed _her to listen to him.

She smiled just a little to seem reassuring. "Tell… Eiji-kun to stay still when he opens his eyes. Where are you all? The cafeteria? He just fainted," she said as she seemed to look at her notes and begin to close over the folders she had open. "I'll be there in a minute. I just have to put these back on the shelf."

Momo bowed to try and seem more respectful. He would get down on his hands and knees if he had to. "You have to come now. He's not breathing properly and he's been unconscious since the start of lunch," he said in the most respectful way he could. "Please, Nurse Kobayashi. I beg of you."

She got up rather quickly then. "What is Eiji-kun's full name, Momoshiro-kun?"

"Kikumaru Eiji, Nurse Kobayashi. Third year, class 3-6-"

Briskly, she pulled her jacket around herself so she wouldn't drip over it. "Come, Momoshiro-kun."

-Nine Paper Cranes-

Fuji sat back against a desk. "Tezuka, I can't tell if he's breathing anymore. I don't think he is." Tezuka pulled open the last window in the room.

"Thanks Tezuka-kun, Fuji-kun," Nurse Kobayashi said. She knew the names of most of the students that attended the school. "You've done well. Momoshiro-kun told me what happened on the way."

She checked his airways, then his pulse. Her face began to look awfully serious. She tried again and felt the weakest pulse she had in a very long time. It had been at the hospital the last time there was one that weak, not at a school.

"Fuji-kun, in my pocket, there's my phone. Please call an ambulance." She knew CPR wouldn't help at this stage. He was alive and perhaps it would help his heart beat, but there was the chance that it could make it worse. He was breathing; therefore, he could quite easily become conscious again if it returned to a normal rhythm. Performing CPR could also break a rib or two – perhaps more – which could cause unnecessary pain on Eiji or even puncture his lungs. All she could do was wait.

She took the phone off of Fuji once he was done. She dialled the front office and told them to put a message over the PA system. A few moments after she hung up, the announcement was made for students to go back to their classrooms. Class 3-6 were to meet at the basketball courts instead.

"Boys, please go to your class and tell your teachers that you're okay. Fuji-kun, please tell Nakamura-sensei that Eiji is unwell. Tezuka-kun, can you meet the ambulance out the front and bring them here afterwards?" she instructed. "Then please remain with your classes until the drill is over."

-Fourteen Paper Cranes-

"Eiji!" Oishi almost cried. They didn't expect to see him at school, not having the last two days off. "Are you okay? You left school in an ambulance!" Oishi was quite obviously worried about his doubles partner.

Eiji smiled. "Hoi, hoi! I missed you too, Oishi!" He said as Oishi gave him a quick hug as guys did. They were on a train, so it was hard to keep balance.

"What happened?" Oishi asked.

Eiji held onto the handle as he explained the whole story to Oishi. Oishi listened intently as Eiji laughed at his own misfortune. Eiji seemed to think of it all as a massive accident, not anything important. He also seemed to find two days at home doing nothing was more boring than watching paint dry, so he made numerous paper cranes to fill in time.

Oishi smiled and sighed with relief. "Don't push yourself too hard," he said kindly. He missed his friend. "You could have taken the week off to get better."

Eiji nodded. "But that's boring, Oishi! I have to thank Momo, Tezuka-buchou and Fujiko. They're the ones who noticed that I was unconscious. Imagine if the whole class walked in and found me! Disaster, nya~!"

Oishi nodded. "I guess you're right," he said with a chuckle.

The walk to school was filled with Eiji ranting about hospitals and random students asking what happened to Eiji on that day. Oishi smiled the whole way. Practice was awfully quiet without Eiji's bouncy enthusiasm. No one would have ever guessed Eiji was quite good with academic subjects. It didn't fit his character at all.

"Eiji-senpai!" Momo called as he almost knocked Eiji over. Ryoma was lucky not to fall on his face as Momo leaped off of his bike. The bike fell on the ground with a thud as Momo left it to interrogate his senpai.

Eiji smiled. "Hi Momo!" he laughed, noticing Momo's distraught expression when he realised he had just scratched his new paint. "Thanks for saving me the other day." Saving was perhaps too strong a word for that sentence, but Eiji had said it anyway.

Momo blushed. "All I did was get Nurse Kobayashi…" he snapped out of his 'ego-stroked' state. "What was wrong?"

Eiji took a deep breath. He'd have to say this so many times it wouldn't be funny by the end of it. He already felt like attaching a sign to himself explaining exactly what happened so he didn't have to say it over and over again. Sure, he loved the attention, but it got very repetitive after a while.

"Anaemia?" Ryoma asked. It sounded like he had heard of it before. "Don't girls tend to get anaemia, Eiji-senpai?"

Eiji explained about the different types of anaemia. Anaemia was a disease of the blood where there was some sort of part of the blood cells that was either minimal or not there. Girls tended to get the iron-deficient anaemia because of their 'monthly-cycle' whereas there were other types common in both boys and girls, such as the one Eiji had: lack of oxygen to his blood cells. Eiji then explained that he had two older sisters – twenty three and twenty one years old – a mother and a grandmother. He really didn't have a choice but to find out.

"I can still play, nya! The doctor said as long as I take care of myself, I should be fine and shouldn't faint very often. But because I fainted the other day, he said for the next week or so take it _super _easy or I could make it worse," Eiji concluded with.

Oishi smiled. "Well, 3-6 has a substitute teacher today. Nakayama-sensei is going to Kobayashi Rika's grandfather's funeral," Oishi filled Eiji in. "So your classmate Rika-san won't be there either. Or Nurse Kobayashi since it's her father that died."

Eiji smiled. He already knew Nurse Kobayashi and Rika were related; mother and daughter, respectively. "Thank you, Oishi," he said. They got to the tennis courts and Eiji beamed. He almost got down on the ground and hugged the court. "I missed these courts so much! The hospital was so boring!"

They heard a cry of Eiji's name before Eiji was tackled with a hug. It was very uncharacteristic of the tensai, but Eiji fainting/knocking himself out on a table had almost given Fuji a panic attack. Quite literally. Fuji realised why he was quite glad he never had to deal with anyone being sick in his family. He wouldn't ever be able to handle being a doctor.

"Fujiko!" Eiji smiled. "Thank you for saving me!"

Fuji shook his head. "Jaa, I didn't do much. Tezuka told me what to do. The most I did was hyperventilate after you left in the ambulance. I ended up in Nurse Kobayashi's office too."

Eiji laughed. "You, Fuji Syuusuke, the tensai of Seishun Gakuen's tennis team, hyperventilated? Nya, that's so weird."

"Eiji," Oishi scolded, "Don't be mean."

Fuji chuckled. "It's okay, Oishi. So what happened?"

Eiji explained it for the umpteenth time that morning. He was beginning to seriously consider the sign idea. Or make up pamphlets to hand out to people when they asked. "I had anaemia when I was little and it came back. So I fainted and knocked myself out on the table," he explained in short. Eiji chuckled a little once again when he said he knocked _himself _out. That didn't happen all that often in a classroom.

"We have Takawa-sensei today… he used to teach in the military schools," Fuji almost groaned. He may have been a genius at tennis, but he did find troubles with teachers. Ryuuzaki-sensei had told him off on quite a regular basis.

"Boys, get changed. You better be on these courts in five minutes or it's laps for all of you," Ryuuzaki-sensei yelled as if on cue. The regulars were mostly tardy. Only Inui, Kaidoh, Taka and of course Tezuka were there on time. It set a very bad example for everyone else.

-Twenty Seven Paper Cranes-

"Stand and attention!" The class stood as Takawa-sensei shouted in a military fashion. "My name is Takawa-sensei. I want nothing but discipline and respect from you. Good morning class."

"Good morning, Takawa-sens-"

"You can do better than that!" he barked. "'Good morning Takawa-sensei, sir!' Repeat!"

"Good morning, Takawa-sensei, sir!"

"Good," he concluded, walking around the classroom with his hands behind his back. If they added a moustache and managed to change his race to German, he would be a perfect Hitler. "Now remain standing and introduce yourselves. After you have introduced yourself, you may sit. Class president!"

"Hello, sir. I am…"

"This guy must be a nut case," someone whispered. "I want Nakayama-sensei back…"

Slowly, the front row had said their names, hobbies and repeated because they were mocked like unconfident soldiers in the army. Of course, they weren't actually soldiers but petrified students who were absolutely unsure of exactly what they were supposed to be doing.

"Excuse me, sir," Eiji said, raising his hand. "May I please sit down?"

"What's your name son?" Takawa-sensei barked.

"Kikumaru Eiji, sir," Eiji said, though his voice was quieter than normal. "May I please sit, Takawa-sensei, sir?"

Takawa-sensei walked up to Eiji's desk. "Louder. What's your name?"

"Kiku-" Eiji said taking in a large breath to remain calm. This guy was going to annoy him. He could feel it.

"Louder."

"Kikuma-" his face was beginning to go pale.

"I can't hear you."

"Please, sir. I need to sit down." Eiji felt so dizzy, but his head wasn't spinning yet at least. He was rather desperate.

"You have legs that look like they work perfectly fine to me. Tell me your name."

"His name is Kikumaru Eiji, sir. He needs to sit down." Fuji looked at Takawa-sensei with his eyes wide open. His eyes were harsh and unforgiving.

"Fuji, you don't need to-"

"Fuji, was it? Are you a wise guy? Tell me, why can't… redhead over here tell me his name?" Takawa-sensei growled. He looked Fuji straight in the eye. Not many dared to do that.

Eiji tried to take a deep breath. "Fuji, don-"

"Sir, he needs to sit down," another classmate pointed out as Eiji put his hands on his desk. Everything had begun to spin. Other students stood up for Eiji as well.

"He has anaemia, si-"

"Kikumaru Eiji, sir!" Eiji barked as loudly as he could. "Permission to sit, sir!" He held his head with one hand to try and keep himself up.

Takawa-sensei smiled. "That's better. Permission granted." Eiji fell back into his seat. His head landed on his arm as he fought to stay conscious. "Sit up boy!"

"Excuse me, Takawa-sensei, Eiji-kun there is about to faint. I suggest you stop badgering him and get on with teaching the class National Language." Nurse Kobayashi was standing at the doorway with Rika behind her. "I heard yelling while I was on my way to get a few things from my desk."

Takawa-sensei growled. "This is my classroom. I am the teacher. If he is unfit to stand for ten minutes, then he shouldn't be at school."

Nurse Kobayashi looked at her watch and then the class clock, then back again. "Rika, does that say it's past ten?" she asked to Rika behind her. Rika nodded. "I'm very sorry, Takawa-sensei, but if you started at the dot of nine, as I'm sure you did, it's been over an hour," Nurse Kobayashi pointed out, continuing to check her watch against the clock. She doubted hers would be off time though. She had timed hers to the clocks in the hospital and then timed the school clocks to the same time. She always did little things like that to organise the world.

Takawa-sensei looked at the clock, then his watch, then the students who all looked rather tired from standing up and bored out of their minds. "Thank you for telling me this, Nurse. Run along now." Takawa-sensei wasn't pleased. "Get out of my classroom!"

Eiji sat up, rubbing his eyes. "That feels better, nya," he pointed out. Just sitting still for a few minutes had helped him a lot. It really wasn't that hard to prevent himself from fainting.

-Forty Paper Cranes-

(A.N: I wasn't going to post this until tomorrow, but it was sitting here and the prologue is really short. So here's the first chapter! Please review!)


	3. One Hundred and Ninety Seven Paper Crane

It really wasn't long before the regional tournament came around. Eiji was training harder than ever to keep up his stamina. Doctors had told him to either stop or at least cut his training regime right down to a fraction of what Eiji needed to keep up with the Seigaku team. Even Nurse Kobayashi was trying to pull Eiji from the regulars at least. He'd visit her for the first ten minutes of lunch break every day and she'd ask him about tennis. Somehow, she'd always weave in that he should cut down on the tennis. Eiji would just smile and laugh as if it were a joke.

But it finally sunk in when Eiji was on the train that early morning. He was standing still in the empty carriage. Morning practice sometimes meant he bet all the workers and students that travelled by train.

He couldn't breathe. He was gasping for air and dizzier than ever before. It was strange considering he hadn't _fainted _since that first time in the classroom. Since then he had only ever felt like fainting. He got off of his seat and sat on the floor, curled up in a little ball. His lungs settled just a little. His chest hurt so much. Even the tiniest breath felt like his lungs were burning.

It was the first time Eiji realised just how sick he was. The warnings were all true. If he didn't stop pushing himself so hard, he'd die. His lungs had always been bad, hence his bad stamina. The doctors couldn't diagnose him with an official illness so he was considered healthy. When the symptoms suddenly stopped before his last year of elementary school, they dismissed him as completely healthy and there was nothing to worry about. He was left alone then. But when the symptoms came back the doctors still couldn't diagnose him. They just told him that he had anaemia _because _of it and eventually he would die.

Eiji didn't want to die.

The train slowed and Eiji tried to breathe again. It hurt even more than before. He was crying, choking on his tears. It made it hurt more, so he cried more.

"Kikumaru-kun, what's wrong?" Rika asked quietly. She was a classmate and had been for a long time, but they never really spoke. Rika was too shy for Eiji's liking. Eiji couldn't joke around with her like he did with others because she got too nervous to say anything. She would laugh and listen but she was beyond shy – she was afraid of what others thought of her and therefore did nothing to make them think badly of her. She was also Nurse and Dr Kobayashi's daughter.

"Rika-chan," he gasped. Words hurt even more than crying.

Rika sat in the seat beside Eiji. She looked at him as he sat in front of her. His head was back and leaning on the wall of the train. "Kikumaru-kun, what's wrong?" she asked again.

"Call your parents, Rika-chan," Eiji gasped as he grabbed his chest. He knew she wasn't used to the informalities he was using. Not many people called her Rika_-chan_. Usually it was Kobayashi-san or Rika-san.

"Rika, don't race onto the train by yourself. What if someone dangerous was on board?" Dr Kobayashi scolded his daughter. He, like his wife, was average. Nothing stood out too much. He was your average weight, average height kind of guy who happened to be a doctor.

"Your father is right, Rika, dear," Nurse Kobayashi said. She looked at Rika in confusion at the look of distress. "Rika…?"

Rika stood. "Otousan, okaasan, something is wrong with Kikumaru-kun," she stuttered out. She panicked as Eiji began to cough. She didn't even have to look to know there was blood.

Nurse Kobayashi almost dropped the bags. She and Dr Kobayashi raced over to Eiji's side.

"Eiji, you'll have to go to hospital. We need to get you off this train," Dr Kobayashi explained.

"No!" Eiji almost shouted. He cringed. "They'll make me quit tennis! But I won't! God damn it, I won't do it. I wish you doctors could do your jobs and _fix me_!" Eiji gasped in pain. He had his head between his knees and nails buried in his legs.

"Kikumaru-kun, don't say that!" Rika cried out defensively for her medically employed parents. Mainly for her father who was ironically Eiji's doctor.

Dr Kobayashi stopped and pulled his hand away. "If you really feel that way, I'm very sorry, Eiji-kun. But we cannot fix you yet. But we can help you. Quitting tennis-"

"NO!" Eiji cried. He was too used to hearing everyone telling him to quit tennis. He wouldn't. Not even if he was going to die on the tennis court. "I'm not quitting! I'll die on the tennis court if I have to! Oishi and I will be the number one doubles team in Japan and Seigaku will defeat Rikkai Dai! We won't stop until we have to. We must win-"

"Eiji-k-"

"I WON'T, I WON'T. I WON'T QUIT TENNIS!"

"EIJI, STOP THAT!" Nurse Kobayashi scolded. Her temper was wearing very thin. But it was because death had finally clicked in Eiji's head that he was in hysterics. He realised just how little time he had left. It wasn't a joke anymore. She doubted she could slide it into a conversation and get away with it anymore.

"Eiji, we'll take you to school where I'll try to help you with what's there but you have to come and see me after school, okay?" Dr Kobayashi compromised. He really didn't get along too well with children. It was a wonder he was a father. "If we don't check your organs, you could die within the week."

"Die?" Rika asked. "Kikumaru-kun is going to die?" She fell back into her seat. She had just lost her grandfather. She couldn't lose anyone else. Even if they weren't as close as Rika was to her grandfather, another person dying would just destroy her.

"Rika, dear, calm down," Nurse Kobayashi said. "We won't let Eiji die yet."

Rika watched as Eiji was laid across the floor and her father tried to find where the source of this pain was. "But he's terminally ill, right? Like Grandpa. Eiji hasn't got cancer, has he?" she asked.

"No, Rika, dear," her mother smiled. "But we'll find out what he has soon."

-Seventy Nine Paper Cranes-

After recovering miraculously from his morning episode, Eiji had proceeded to morning practice anyway. He was stubborn. He was giving laps for running late and sent on his merry way.

Class, however, was more stressful. His anaemia continued to play up so things would go blurry for a few moments before he'd tune back in. He missed half of the notes and when a test was that was coming up. He was good at concentrating in class until Fuji would distract him on most occasions. But nobody believed that Eiji was the smart one of the pair. Fuji's 'tensai ability' only ran for tennis and the arts. Everything else he could plod along, study occasionally, get good marks and make it look effortless because he could make it _look _good. The content however wasn't usually all that good.

"Kikumaru-kun, are you alright?" Rika asked. She shared her mother's kind smile but her father's dull coloured eyes.

Eiji looked at Rika. She had already asked at least five times that day. "I'm fine, thanks, Rika-chan!" He hid his annoyance quite well. He didn't want this sort of attention, even if he was a spotlight hog. He didn't want anyone to know just how sick he was.

Rika nodded. "That's good," she muttered. She was socially awkward when talking alone to someone in a room full of people. She couldn't speak a single sentence of Japanese in front of a crowd. But she was better with one-on-one experiences. She could usually figure out something to say in that sort of situation. Her social impairment wasn't as bad around friends and family, of course. "S-since I have to go see my dad after school, do you… want me to wait and we can walk… together?" she was nervous. Her nerves made it sound more like a date then what it was supposed to be. It was supposed to be just company.

"Sure, nya," Eiji said, fake smile still plastered to his face. "Meet me after club activities. I'll be at the tennis courts, of course."

"S-sure," she agreed as Eiji left. She could tell the smile was fake. She was the daughter of a doctor and a nurse; the caring gene was forced there. She brushed a hand through her hair to push it out of her eyes. Her hair always sat across her eyes. She had a crooked smile and a positive outlook on things, aka, she was an optimist.

Eiji avoided her all day. He couldn't face those eyes that screamed pity on him. Practice was awkward once Rika turned up to watch the end. The Student Support and Representative Group, which oddly Oishi wasn't it, had finished early. They were not as high as the student council, but like a back-up committee.

"You played well today, Kikumaru-kun," Rika smiled. Eiji groaned. It was going to be a long walk.

-Ninety Two Paper Cranes-

Eiji hadn't been looked at the same way in weeks. He had hit Rika; she had followed and pestered him all day that day and the only feeling he had got from her was pity. It was an accident, in being unintended. She understood though, his new medication was meant to relieve pain but it caused so much psychological pain it wasn't worth it. His marks and all dropped and he was moodier. Fighting with others in the class was almost common now.

"Eiji, are you alright?" Fuji asked. Eiji had explained he was on new medication to him, but not about his lungs. He doubted _he'd _ever tell Fuji.

Eiji nodded. "Hoi, hoi!" he said with a fake smile. He had seemed to almost perfect it. "I'm fine, Fujiko."

Fuji just had to open his eyes. He could have triggered Eiji's breakdown in a millisecond, but he didn't. After the crap Eiji got after the mistake with Rika, he didn't deserve to breakdown and cry in front of everyone. They all thought his anaemia had driven Eiji into seeking more attention. They didn't believe him when he said he was sick or he needed to see the nurse. They said it was an act – Eiji craving for attention.

The bell rang and Fuji picked up his books. "Off to see Nurse Kobayashi?" he asked.

Eiji nodded as he took his books in his arms and dodged a paper ball that had been aimed at his head. He wasn't insane like they had said, just more emotional than usual.

"Hey, girl-basher. Hurt any girls lately?"

"I bet he can't even stand up to fight a guy. He has to beat up girls."

Eiji didn't even go to his locker anymore. His books were split between Fuji and Rika. His locker was full though – full of letters teasing and criticizing him. He didn't smile much anymore. Not in class anyway. The only time he would was playing tennis. The club, well the regulars mostly, believed Eiji. They defended him.

He put down his books on the small table in Nurse Kobayashi's office, then proptly fell back on the bed. His chest was killing him.

"Eiji-kun! How are you?" Nurse Kobayashi smiled.

Eiji groaned. "Do you want the true or convenient answer?" he asked.

"I'd like the truth," Nurse Kobayashi frowned. "It's only polite to tell the truth. Never lie to me, okay?"

Eiji nodded as he put his arm on his forehead. "I'm not good at all, nya. My chest hurts, I'm being picked on and my medicine is making me emotional and woozy."

Nurse Kobayashi smiled a little. "Well, I'll give you some medicine to make your chest stop hurting, I'll speak with your teachers about the students but I can't help the side effects. They're going to give you a different medication when you see the doctor tonight, remember?" she pointed out.

Eiji smiled. At least he had Nurse Kobayashi to escape to when it all got bad. She wouldn't judge him. "Thanks," he almost whispered. Nurse Kobayashi handed Eiji his medicine and placed a bucket beside the bed. She looked over how thin he was. He didn't eat much and the medicine made him ill. It wouldn't be surprising if his illness also made him thin. She worried so much about if he'd be okay. The doctors had said he'd be lucky to live a month after he collapsed on the early morning train. That was almost a month ago now.

Eiji was very lucky to be alive.

"Nurse Kobayashi, there's been a fight in the main hall," a student said as they stood in the doorway. "There's blood everywhere."

Nurse Kobayashi looked at Eiji. "Will you be okay?" she asked. He nodded and she grabbed a first aid kit full of bandages and left.

He really did not feel well. They were so worried about the effects more 'serious' medication could take, they gave him this… 'shit' as his oldest brother had dubbed it, to make him better. He had never felt worse.

His stomach churned. He may have had a bucket, but he could flush vomit away if it was in the toilet. Then it didn't smell as bad. He'd had plenty of practice; this was almost a daily routine now.

He sat in the small bathroom with a toilet and a shower in case chemicals were spilled or someone was burned. The door was slightly open. He could hear footsteps. "Okaasan, are you here?" Rika asked.

"No, there's a fight somewhere and she had to leave," Eiji called out. "I'm feeling like crap."

Rika opened up the door. "That's not good," she said with a small smile that resembled her mother's. "Want some company?"

Eiji moved over a little. "Are you sure?" I'm sick," he said in reply. Rika sat down and put a hand on Eiji's back.

"It's alright," she said. It was times like these where Eiji actually didn't mind having Rika around. Rika was a friend, but she got annoying when she asked him if he was okay when he was obviously fine. At least for what Eiji could be. Eiji listened to her; she was his friend when everyone else had turned their backs on him.

Eiji hunched over the toilet as Rika gently supported his back. He was struggling – there was nothing left in his stomach.

After the nausea had faded, Eiji got up and Rika helped him to the bed to lie down again. "Feeling better?" she asked. Eiji nodded and Rika sat in her mother's chair.

"I don't care, Momoshiro-kun, you should not engage in an aggressive act," Nurse Kobayashi said so loudly it was perfectly audible to Eiji and Rika in the next room. Eiji and Rika looked at each other. This was going to be bad news.

"But, Nurse Kobay-"

"How are you feeling now, Eiji-kun?" Nurse Kobayashi asked as she walked into her office. "Oh, Rika, when did you get here?"

Behind Nurse Kobayashi stood Momo, Kaidoh, Fuji and Oishi - along with some other students of course. "Eiji-senpai," Momo and Kaidoh spoke in unison. They had bandages on their arms and bandaids everywhere. Their white shirts had red patches on them.

"Much better than before," Eiji smiled a little. "Why are Momo, Kaidoh, Fujiko and Oishi here?"

Nurse Kobayashi looked at the boys. "Anyone care to explain?" she asked. She turned to a shelf and pulled down two containers. "Rika, dear, you're here for your lunch, right?"

Rika nodded as the four boys all looked guilty. Oishi spoke first. Eiji, there were some juniors and seniors talking about you and they were mocking you in front of Fuji, Momo and Kaidoh. So they argued back, it became a fight and I tried to stop it on my own and got caught up in it too…"

Eiji had stopped looking at them as soon as they mentioned it was about him. He saw the bandage tightly wrapped around Oishi's wrists. "You're all idiots," he breathed. "Let them talk about me, I don't listen to them and either should you! I thought you were better than they are!" He hated this sort of attention.

"Eiji-kun," Rika said, trying to usher him to calm down. Eiji was mad at them. Almost… no, even more angry than he was at Oishi when they fought about Momo's position as a regular.

The four boys looked apologetic. "Eiji."

"Eiji-senpai."

"We're really sorry," they said in perfect unison.

Eiji sighed. "I guess I can't stay mad, nya." He smiled a little. "Do it again and I will though."

Nurse Kobayashi smiled then took down the names of those involved. School policy meant she had to send home a letter of any treatment – unless it was like Eiji's and was requested by the parent/guardian – to be sent home including the cause. They would all be in trouble soon.

-One Hundred and Eleven Paper Cranes-

"Fighting, under no circumstances, is unacceptable," Ryuuzaki-sensei scolded the four boys. "What gave the idea you could fight other students?"

There was silence. "We were def-"

"He wasn't even there and he wouldn't want you in fight either. Do you know how the reputation of this tennis club – no, the school – will be once word gets out four of the tennis club members engaged in a fight?" she asked. "Not good." She looked at Tezuka. "Is there anything you would like to add?"

Tezuka looked something other than stoic for once. He must have been really mad. "If you fight again, you're out of the club. Do I make myself clear?"

"H-hai!"

"Good. Run fifty laps and then all four of you are on ball duty with the freshmen. Do not get careless," Tezuka concluded. The four ran off and Tezuka sighed. He never thought his regulars would get into a fight. "I feel a headache coming on," he muttered as he returned to the four remaining regulars. Eiji could not stop watching his friends being punished for protecting him.

Inui looked at his notebook. "That ruins the schedule for today's training," he said, flipping through his data for a training schedule appropriate for five people. There was no doubt he'd have one.

"Warm up, ten laps," Tezuka shouted while Inui tried to find something to do. "Freshmen, non-regulars are to do drills on court C and D. Regulars to courts A and B. Those being punished, continue as specified."

"Eiji-chan~!" Eiji heard as his sister ran up to the court.

"Neechan," he breathed. Today was the day he was supposed to skip practice, wasn't it? He sighed. "Sorry, Tezuka-buchou. I've got to go early," he apologised as he left the courts. He watched as Oishi looked at him. At least he looked apologetic. Fuji, on the other hand, did not. He was crueller than usual. He did not spare mercy on anyone who said anything even remotely mean about Eiji.

Eiji saw Fuji look at him. His glare hurt. What had he done to his best friend?

-One hundred and Thirty Eight Paper Cranes-

"You're here, Eiji-kun," Dr Kobayashi smiled. "Today we got the results from the tests."

Eiji's mother looked hopeful. "Isn't there any good news?"

Dr Kobayashi's smile faded. "I'm afraid, not so much," he said. "Do you want the best of the news or the worst?"

"The worst," Eiji spat out. He'd end on a good note, hopefully. Or what sounded like a good note.

Dr Kobayashi nodded. "I see. Well Eiji-kun, it seems we have to strongly advise you to stop playing tennis. We can't force you, but we've asked a lot of opinions of other doctors – even a doctor that is famous in Europe – and they all agree."

"Next," Eiji said abruptly. "I've been told that enough and I refuse."

Dr Kobayashi chuckled. "Is that so?" he smirked. His face returned to seriousness quite quickly. "Well, I have to alert you, forty-three percent of your right lung and fifty one percent of your left lung have stopped functioning. You barely have a single lung left altogether. Your walls of your heart have weakened ten percent in the last month and your motor skills are down a further twenty percent. You're going to find it hard to use chopsticks soon, or even hold a tennis racket. Your left hard is quite obviously the worst."

Eiji's mother burst into tears. "That's a lot more than before."

Eiji's body was almost frozen. The only movement was the movement of his shallow breaths in his chest and the curl of his left hand. Sure, his grip with his left hand was horrible. He always dropped the left side of things. But his left arm was still strong. He played acrobatic tennis like there was absolutely nothing wrong.

Dr Kobayashi nodded. "That's an overall decrease of about thirty one percent of functions in the last month. It's increased its rate one hundred and sixty percent. That means next month, if we follow this pattern, you shall have the lost seventy-nine of functions. After that, you will be at no body function, an increase of two-hundred and five."

"But the nationals-"

"Eiji-kun, I must be frank. You must quit tennis. You're very lucky to be alive," Dr Kobayashi said sternly. "You won't live until Nationals."

Eiji felt something warm roll down his cheeks as his mother wailed. He never wanted this to happen. He didn't deserve this. Had he killed people in his last life?

Shou put a hand on his brother's shoulder. "It'll be alright, Eiji," he tried to say comfortingly.

"Eiji-kun, we want you to stay in the hospital. Then we can watch over you and maybe even cure you," Dr Kobayashi said, shuffling the tissue box toward the crying family. "But you'll have to withdraw from Seigaku and therefore the tennis club."

Eiji got up and took his mother's hand. "We'll be leaving now, Dr Kobayashi. Thank you very much. Do you have my new medicine?" he asked. Eiji hated hospitals. All he got was bad news. People die in hospitals and Eiji didn't want to die.

"Yes. Here is the prescription and a doctor's certificate as always. Miyuki-chan will meet you there and help you," Dr Kobayashi concluded. "Please, Eiji-kun, Kikumaru-san, take care."

-One Hundred and Ninety Seven Paper Cranes-

(A.N: You'd never guess this was meant to be a oneshot when I started this last year. I seperated it because it's almost forty pages long. I hope you enjoyed it. The next chapter will be up tomorrow! Please review!)


	4. Four Hundred and Eighty Two Paper Cranes

"Eiji-kun?"

Eiji's eyes were red and dry. Crying did that. "What?" he snapped. He was still upset. The rain had soaked his clothes thoroughly as he curled up to try and stay warm.

Rika was very concerned. The only other time she had seen Eiji in tears was on the train. "What did my father tell you?" The rain pitter-pattered on her umbrella to a steady rhythm.

Eiji rested his chin on his knees. He was shivering. "Quit tennis, go into hospital and stay and my body will stop function before nationals, in short. Basically, I'm going to die anytime I could die, even right now."

"What?" Rika asked. "You'll make it to Nationals, I'm sure of it." She held the umbrella over Eiji's head. "Trust me, you will."

Eiji grumbled. "That makes one of us, nya." His voice was so hoarse it was hard to understand. "Rika-chan, I don't tell anyone how scared I am, so you better not tell anyone, okay?"

Rika nodded. "Sure, Eiji-kun."

"I'm terrified! I can't sleep at night because I'm scared I won't wake up. I can't concentrate because I can only think of what it would be like with me gone. I'm so afraid that they'll just overdoes me to put me out of my misery when I go see the doctors. I hold a pen and I have to try to hold it, I'm afraid I'll snap or drop it. I'm scared of what my family really things. I'm afraid Fujiko is just pretending he doesn't side with those who don't believe me. I'm terrified of what'll they'll all do to me next. I'm scared the only thing everyone feels for me is pity. I'm afraid people only like me because they pity me." Eiji was crying again.

"Eiji-kun, I like you," Rika blurted out.

Eiji shook his head. "It's only pity! You like me because you pity me, just like I said."

"No, Eiji-kun, I don't pi-"

"You do!" Eiji said, slapping Rika's hand away. "Get away from me!"

"Eiji-kun, I lov-"

"You pity me! You can't wait until I die because you won't have to feel sorry for me!" Eiji continued to shout. "Get away from me! I hate you! I hate you! Get away!"

Rika did. She left him alone again as he buried his tears into his knees. She looked back to see him curled up, soaked through with rain and tears. He obviously didn't want her to be around him anymore.

She walked for a while, ending up at another park. She crashed into another, his body warm like he had been inside not long ago, although still wet from the rain. "Kobayashi-chan?" The mildly feminine voice asked.

"Ah! Fu-Fuji-kun," she stuttered. "I'm sorr-"

Fuji smiled. "It's no matter. What are you doing here?" he asked.

Rika couldn't hold back tears now. "Eiji-kun… he yelled at me. He said he hates me," she cried.

Fuji's grin grew wider. "Really? Jaa… why don't we take a walk and you can tell me what happened," he suggested. Rika nodded and explained everything – apart from Eiji dying – to the smiling tensai. He held her abnormally close, usually uncomfortable for Rika to hug someone almost a stranger but he was so warm and it was raining.

"I know that was abridged, Kobayashi-chan. I know just how sick Eiji is," Fuji said with that creepy smile plastered on his face. It was like… he enjoyed Rika's misfortune.

"He told you?" Rika asked.

Fuji shook his head. "My sister knows his older brother. They speak often and my sister doesn't speak quietly. I overheard everything."

"You don't mind him lying to you?"

Fuji, again, shook his head. "I'd rather him lie than yell at me for knowing," Fuji said with a hint of teasing in his voice. He had opened his eyes.

Rika looked down. "I guess you're right."

They had stopped, looking over a ledge to a path leading to a pond. It was beautiful, even in the rain. The ledge would have had to of been at least four metres or more high.

"Why are you taking my best friend away from me?" he asked abruptly. He was harsher, angrier. Jealousy was a terrible sin.

Rika paused. "What?"

"Eiji. He's my best friend. Before you came along, everything was fine. Eiji wasn't as upset and he was always with me. Why?"

"I didn't… Eiji-kun… I didn't take-"

Fuji was very upset. He had already lost his brother but he refused to lose his best friend. "Why'd you do it? Does it make you feel good, stealing the helpless and destroying them in front of their friends?" Fuji was yelling. They had stepped closer to the ledge now.

"Fuji-kun, I don't want to ste-"

"Don't lie to me!" he yelled. Eiji had made him uncharacteristic as well. He wasn't taking the words of Eiji's coming death well. "I heard you confess to Eiji and I'm so glad he rejected you. You deserve it, you little bitch."

Rika panicked. Her heart was racing. She wasn't a bad person. She had done nothing wrong. Fuji was just jealous he now had to share, just like a child. But those eyes that he stared at her with, they held many strong emotions that had been held back for a very long time. They were terrifying Rika.

Rika gasped as she clutched onto Fuji's shirt, her feet barely holding her over the ledge. "I'm sorry!" she cried. "You can have him! I'll never bother you or Eiji-kun again. Please…"

Fuji had calmed down again, eyes closed and his face held that devious smile. Rika realised the pain in his eyes hadn't gone away, just hidden once again. "Saa… please do that," he said, grabbing her hands. He held her still. "But an eye for an eye."

He let go. Barely two seconds later, there was a sickening thwack. Fuji pulled his camera from his bag and perfectly aligned it. The picture was beautifully horrid. Mangled limbs and blood tainting her face, her hair was swept from her eyes as she was soaked through the rain.

Jealousy, supposedly the least satisfying of the deadly sins, thrilled Fuji. Rika got what he thought she deserved. All the pain and suffering she had put Eiji through was atoned for.

Fuji smiled. The picture was going on his wall.

-Two hundred and Sixty Five Paper Cranes-

No one looked at Eiji or Fuji the same way. Students were outraged, cruel and yet scared of the pair. Rika had been admitted into hospital after her fall and remained unconscious for a while. Ever since Rika 'fell', Fuji had been sporting the sort of grin that said 'I did something horrible and I liked it. You should be terrified.'

Eiji felt worse when Momo began to tease him, asking where his 'girlfriend' was when Rika didn't turn up near the end of practice. Eiji had shouted at him once, that occasion he could faintly remember but only because he knew he had done it. Momo never teased Eiji again after that day.

"Excuse me, Nakamura-sensei," the ever-so-confident voice of the vice-principal interrupted. The class stood at once.

"Ah! Nakakuchi-sensei!" Nakamura-sensei smiled. "Class!"

"Konnichiwa, Nakakuchi-sensei!" The class bowed in unison as per school regulations.

"Good afternoon, 3-6. Please, sit," Nakakuchi-sensei nodded. "Nakamura-sensei, is it alright if I borrow Fuji Syuusuke and Kikumaru Eiji?" Behind him stood Nurse Kobayashi and Ryuuzaki-sensei; neither of the pair looked at ease.

Both of the boys stood and looked at each other. "Go," Nakamura sensei instructed. "Get the notes off of someone when you get back."

"Hai!" they both chorused. They followed diligently. The hallways were empty and some classrooms empty too. They reached the office of the vice-principal silently. Inside sat Dr Kobayashi, Shou and Yumiko – Eiji and Fuji's older siblings respectively.

Nakakuchi-sensei sat down behind his desk and the two women standing beside him. "Boys, we'll get straight to the point. Your behaviour is unacceptable."

Eiji didn't expect that, but the expression on the tensai's face showed that he knew it was going to happen.

"Yelling at fellow students, hitting, pushing, severely injuring another student, causing conspiracy and alliances so the school is split into two rival groups," the vice-principal read off of a list. "Fuji engaged in a fight and Eiji misses quite a few classes – so many he's almost failing the year."

Eiji shrank back into himself. He had done nothing wrong. People fought over whether he spoke the truth or not but that was not started by him. He skipped class because he felt unwell or other students bullied him enough to need fresh air to calm down.

"Tezuka and I have already warned you Fuji. Eiji, you were there," Ryuuzaki-snsei said. "We shouldn't have to be here right now."

Nurse Kobayashi nodded. "I've also warned Fuji-kun and Eiji-kun was there that time as well."

"Do you understand why we have you here?" Dr Kobayashi asked. Now was probably an optimal time.

Fuji remained silent but nodded slightly. Eiji looked completely confused. He could not remember anything about what they were saying. Okay, he remembered hitting Rika once months ago now. But yelling? Pushing? He had done nothing of the sort.

"Eiji, you look like have no idea what's going on," Shou pointed out. He was the older image of Eiji, albeit his hair was more brown than red.

Eiji nodded a little. "I remember I hit Rika-chan a few months ago and occasionally I'll talk back to people who pick on me, but that's it," he explained. "Honest, nya."

Fuji looked quite surprised at this. "You yelled at Kobayashi-chan the other day," he pointed out. "When it was raining."

This definitely alarmed Eiji. He'd remember yelling at someone, particularly Rika of all people. "I don't remember that. What are you talking about?" His voice sounded panicked.

"Rika said the same thing. You were really upset and crying. Then within an instant, you snapped and were yelling, screaming at her that you hate her," Dr Kobayashi recounted. "Then Fuji-kun dropped her from the ledge."

"I believe she slipped, I grabbed her hands then let go," Fuji pointed out. "I didn't drop her."

"Same difference, Syuusuke. Rika-san is in hospital because of you," Yumiko scolded. "I can't believe my own brother would be this cruel. You just wait until Mother and Father arrive home tomorrow morning."

"You called them?" Shou asked. "Wasn't your father representing his business overseas?"

"Exactly. Syuusuke's very lucky the main meeting was yesterday," Yumiko sighed.

The room went quiet. Ryuuzaki-sensei sighed. "Well, even so, you've both been warned and thus a punishment had to be decided," she explained.

Nakakuchi-sensei nodded. "Yes. Fuji-kun, we've agreed that in your state of mind of late, you are a danger to other students. You'll be suspended for the rest of the week. In that time, you have the choice to either sort out what is going on in your head with a family member, friend and/or a counsellor."

Fuji shrugged. "Sounds alright," he said with a small smile.

"In a sense, I guess," Nakakuchi-sensei shrugged. "But it's not a holiday. Eiji, you are also suspended until the end of the week to regain control or gain some sort of techniques to become calm when you become angry or frustrated. We do not need another over-emotional teenager in our school."

"I understand," Eiji nodded.

Nakakuchi sensei smiled. "If Shou and Yumiko both agree you're in good enough condition to enter school again, come Monday, the suspension will be recorded as a verified school absence with a doctor's certificate from Dr Kobayashi if he and his co-worker, psychiatrist Mei Ichirou, deem you are unlikely to cause trouble again. Understand?"

"Un," the boys agreed.

-Four Hundred and Three Paper Cranes-

"Hey, Aniki," Yuuta asked as put his books on the table and his school bag on a chair. He had come overnight to have dinner with his parents upon their return to the country. Yumiko had agreed to drive Yuuta to school again.

Fuji looked up from his breakfast. He was still in his dishevelled pyjamas and his hair was messy. "Hmm?" he asked with chopsticks in his mouth.

"Don't you have to get ready for school?" Yuuta pointed out. He held up his tie in his fingers. "And can you tie my tie. Mizuki usually helps me."

"Mifume? I've never heard of him," Fuji commented with a sly smile. "Well, I'm not going to school today." He began tying the tie. "I thought a thirteen year old, turning fourteen, should be able to tie his tie."

Yuuta blushed. "Aniki! I can do it, it just looks bad and takes an hour," he replied. He began to look series. "Why aren't you going to school? You're not sick, are you?"

Fuji chuckled. "Jaa, maybe. No, I've been suspended for yesterday, today and tomorrow."

"Suspended?" Yuuta asked. Sure, his brother would pull a prank every so often, but nothing to get suspended. "What for?"

"Danger to other students, apparently," Fuji shrugged. "They think I've been rather reckless of late and they didn't like the way I treated Kobayashi-chan,"

Yuuta took his tie from his brother. "What did you do to Kobayashi-san, Aniki?"

"I dropped her from the ledge near the pond at the park," he stated plainly.

Yuuta paused for a moment. "Is Kobayashi-san okay?" he asked. He wanted to know how badly she was hurt before he asked 'why'.

Fuji shrugged. "Conscious. If I only got suspended for three days, I take it as she's not dead."

Yuuta took a deep breath. "But why do it, Aniki? What did she do?" he asked.

Fuji's hand curled into a fist. "It's hard to explain," he admitted. Yuuta tapped his arm as Fuji searched for the right words to say. "I was protecting a friend… and I was a little jealous, I guess."

Yuuta knew there had to be a reason. "Protecting who, Aniki?"

Fuji couldn't like. Not to Yuuta. "Ever since Kobayashi found out Eiji has –" here, Fuji paused momentarily – "anaemia, she's been trying to make sure Eiji's okay. Ever since, he's been more upset and frustrated. All of the attention she gives him makes him retreat to himself and avoid even me. I want my best friend back." Fuji smiled. "But it's okay."

"Aniki, couldn't you just tell Eiji-senpai this?"

Fuji shrugged. "I could, but he's with his aunt in Kumamoto where he's being 'punished'." Fuji chuckled. "More like spoiled."

Yuuta nodded. Eiji's aunt spoiled everyone rotten, even strangers. "I can see your point," he agreed. "Call Eiji then."

"Yuuta, time to go to school! Syuusuke, get changed. I want you ready by the time I get home!" Yumiko called.

-Four Hundred and Eighty Two Paper Cranes-

(A.N: This chapter is choppy because, as I said earlier, this was originally a oneshot so it had to have some time skips. But I think it's not too bad. I hope it's not too bad. ^^;

Please review!)


	5. Six Hundred and Sixty Three Paper Cranes

First, there was a gently buzzing noise, then a tune. Eiji looked at his phone in confusion. It was school hours. No one should have been calling him. "Hello?" Eiji answered.

"Eiji! How's your 'punishment' going?" Fuji's voice came.

"Uncle is home, so I've been doing homework and chores from sunrise to sunset. I have to be in bed by eight."

Fuji chuckled. "Yumiko has me doing chores and studying too. I had to fix the wall in the guest room, you know the one we ripped by accident? I had to fix the frame because I broke it as I took it down."

Eiji smiled. "Have you done the math homework sensei sent us? I don't get it. I think he sent the wrong page."

"Really? I've been banned of computer privileges. I got caught editing my photos," Fuji's voice chuckled.

Eiji brought his knees to his chest. "I haven't seen your pictures in a while, nya. When I get back, I'll have to come see them."

Fuji agreed. "Yes. You can stay over, too."

"Are you sure you're not grounded?"

"I'm sure."

"Eiji-kun, come inside please," a gentle voice asked from the door. Eiji nodded as he got up.

"I have to go. I'll see you soon," Eiji smiled a little.

"Bye Eiji. Take care. I look forward to it."

Eiji closed his phone and sighed. He brushed off his pants as he walked inside. There, his sister and brother waited for him. "Eiji," Takumi breathed. "Dr Kobayashi wants to see you."

Eiji sighed. Dr Kobayashi again? He had already seen him every day for the last week. He really had been with his aunt and uncle in Kumamoto, but Dr Kobayashi had seen him in a town midway between Kumamoto and Tokyo.

"Hello, Eiji-kun," Dr Kobayashi's voice greeted. Eiji blinked. Dr Kobayashi wasn't meant to be in Kumamoto.

"Hi…" Eiji greeted. "Aren't you meant to be in Tokyo?"

Dr Kobayashi chuckled. "I thought I'd visit today. Besides, the train trip was just the right amount of time to start reading a medical journal that's been sitting on my shelf."

"What's it about?" Eiji asked, faking interesting. He'd delay the news he was dreading for as long as he could.

"Ironically, the effects of lung disease on the brain and other organs such as the heart," Dr Kobayashi smiled.

Eiji's hopefully distractive comment didn't quite work as it seemed. "Oh. It sounds interesting, nya," he replied.

Dr Kobayashi's expression turned serious. "Well, it gave me insight as to possibly why your memory lapses."

Takumi put her hand on Eiji's shoulder. "Really?" She looked hopeful.

Dr Kobayashi frowned. "No, I'm lying. I just wanted to see the look on your face – of course, really! Why would I lie about such an important matter?" he asked. "You say you've gotten moodier since that old medication, Eiji-kun."

Eiji nodded. "That's right, nya! It was horrible!"

Dr Kobayashi sighed. "Would you believe me if I said it wasn't because of the medication?"

"Then why-?" Takumi paused.

"Because the oxygen isn't enough to stimulate your whole brain, it's prioritising. Motor function, speech and long term memory seem to have priority. The part of your brain controlling emotion is getting less oxygen so your emotions have been spiking at an increasing rate. It seems your short term memory and emotion have 'taken a beating' and whenever this influx of emotion builds up, your memory 'turns off'' and you completely forget what happened."

"So I really did yell at Rika-chan?" Eiji breathed.

"Yes, you did."

"I can't remember because I got so emotional?"

"That is correct. Your brain is shutting down," Dr Kobayashi explained. "I've also noticed your words aren't as clear as it was about two weeks ago. Say 'Nama mu…' oh, don't worry. With this new data, we can tell you that your remaining life-span is very short."

"How short?" Shou asked. He couldn't stand not knowing how long his youngest brother was going to live. He had always known everything about his brother.

"Previously, it was less than two months but now, a month at most. At the rate of deterioration, within the next two weeks, I would not be surprised if Eiji could no longer breathe by himself by himself," Dr Kobayashi concluded. "I'm very serious, Eiji. You should immediately quit t-"

"Quit tennis, right? I'm not. Never," Eiji said. His voice lacked as much emotion as usual. The comment his emotions affected his memory had really gotten deep into him.

"Well, that too, but I'm now saying that just school is beyond your capabilities. Soon, you won't be able to write and your handwriting is already atrocious. Quit school, and subsequently tennis. You should spend the rest of your days at home or in hospital."

Eiji frowned. "Are you crazy?" he asked in a monotone voice. "I won't quit tennis so how likely is it I'll quit school, nya?"

"Eiji-"

"Taku-ane, can I take Hige for a walk? I need some fresh air," Eiji asked. Hige, the dog, wagged his tail at the sentence including 'Hige' and 'walk' in it. Takumi nodded. Hige would protect Eiji. Hige always had. Even after Yuki died.

-Five hundred and Thirty Four Paper Cranes-

"_Takumi! I think Hige and Yuki want their dinner!"_

_Takumi smiled as she set out the dog food for her two dogs. Yuki was as white as snow and Hige's mother. Hige was only a pup and had black and white fur. Hige's tail wagged and tongue hung out of his mouth as he waited for his dinner._

"_Here you go," Takumi smiled as she opened the door to outside so the dogs wouldn't mess up the floor._

_It was sudden, but Yuki whined. Hige sniffed the air and began to run. Yuki barked as Hige managed to crawl under the gate. Takumi dropped the bowls and ran after Hige, Yuki staying by her side diligently. The fourteen year old called for Hige as he ran, barking and looking back to see if they were following. If Takumi would stop, so would Hige and he'd bark so much Yuki would tug on Takumi's shorts desperately._

_Hige stopped at something on the ground. He licked at it and curled up beside it when he got no response. Takumi caught up and saw her youngest brother on the floor, as pale as a ghost. Yuki whined again, licking Eiji's face in attempt to wake him up. Yuki curled up on the other side to Hige and sat her hand on his chest._

"_Takumi!" Shou called as he ran down to his sister younger by three years and his brother, younger by twelve._

_Takumi knelt down and felt her five year old brother's face. It was cold. She turned instantly. "Niisan! Quick! It's Eiji!"_

_Shou ran as fast as he could and stopped where Eiji lay. "What happened?" Takumi was almost in hysterics. She was crying as she ran a hand down her youngest brother's face. _

_Slowly, Eiji's eyes opened. He felt the heaviness of Yuki's head on his chest and Hige on his arm. He saw his sister's tears. "Taku-ane, what happened?" Eiji was attacked by the slobbery kisses of both the dogs. Eiji giggled a little. "Stop it! Yuki! Hige!" Eiji began to cough, from mild to violent rather quickly._

_After a few moments, it subsided and Eiji tried to sit up. He felt dizzy, nauseous and cold, all at the same time. He put one hand to his forehead and it was freezing._

_Shou frowned. "Are you okay?" he asked as he knelt down to his brother's height. It was quite a distance, considering Shou was seventeen._

_Eiji grabbed his brother's hand. "A bit dizzy… why are you out this early?"_

_-Five hundred and Eighty Seven Paper Cranes-_

_Shou held his brother in his arms as he walked into the hospital. Eiji had lay down and stayed rather still for at least an hour but he hadn't gotten any better._

"_Kikumaru-kun!" a voice greeted happily._

"_Ah, Yamaru-kun, why are you here?" Shou asked._

_Eiji closed his eyes, feeling rather tired. It wasn't normal for him to be so exhausted. His family were overfilled with health and happiness. Between them, they were perfect in health; they rarely even got colds or the flu._

"_Shou-nii…" Eiji coughed as he gripped onto Shou's shirt in pain. His chest was aching and heart pounding at an unbelievable rate._

"_Hello, what's going on," a woman asked, presumably a nurse by her attire. "Quickly, quickly! This way!" The woman spent mere seconds at the desk and a doctor and a few other nurses were ready for Eiji._

_-Five Hundred and Ninety Six Paper Cranes-_

"_He has anaemia, huh?" Dr Kobayashi noted as he looked at his clipboard. "I'm afraid this is more serious than simple anaemia." He closed the door and stood up straight. _

_Shou sat up as his parents held Eiji's hands. "What do you mean?"_

_Dr Kobayashi smiled. "Hello, Kikumaru-san! My name is Dr Kobayashi. I'm going to take care of you," he said in a voice that screamed how unaccustomed to children he was. Either that or he was a really dorky, pathetic father. Ironically, he was the second and first at the same time._

"_I'm not a baby," Eiji grumbled, pulling at the oxygen mask they had put on him._

_Dr Kobayashi nodded. "Of course you're not. Is this your family?"_

_Eiji didn't like him already. He pointed to the members of his family as he introduced them. "That's Papa and Mama, my biggest brother Shou-nii and by biggest sister Takumi-ane, my other big sister Yasuhiko-ane and my big brother Setsu-nii. That's Grandma and Grandpa."_

_Dr Kobayashi tried to memorise their names but it was hard. He just learned of nine people in a few minutes. "Well, Eiji-kun – can I call you that? – I'm going to speak to your parents first, okay? My wife will take care of you if you need help."_

_The adults dispersed and Setsu folded his arms. "I wonder what she sees in him. He's a f-"_

_Shou hit his brother in the arm. "You're ten," he pointed out. "Don't judge adults."_

_The door opened and Dr Kobayashi came back inside. "Eiji-kun, are you feeling alright?" he asked. Eiji nodded. "Eiji-kun, we need to do some more tests. We want to find out what is really making you sick."_

_Shou shivered. "From what and how bad is it?"_

_Dr Kobayashi frowned. "Well, Kikumaru-kun, all of the blood tests and the MRI we did earlier point to your younger brother dying. It could be anything between a few days and twenty years, but your brother – Eiji-kun – is going to die."_

-Six Hundred and Thirty Five Paper Cranes-

Eiji gently held a card in his hands. He wasn't sure what he would say, but hopefully they could strike up a conversation. Dr Kobayashi and his co-worker, Mei Ichirou, had both said they would like to take Eiji into the hospital for at least a week. Just so they could monitor his progress to see if he really was getting better or worse – hopefully, they'd cure him too.

He had slipped one of his paper cranes inside the card earlier. He made them often, whenever he was at home or found spare paper. In hospital, he could always find some sort of paper somewhere. Either that or he'd walk around the hospital and the doctors/nurses would get into a panic because Eiji had gone missing. Dr and Nurse Kobayashi always told them to calm down – Eiji was still able to move freely, after all – and wait for Eiji to return to his room.

He gently knocked on the door and a soft reply returned. He pushed it open with something resembling a small smile on his face. Although Eiji was in hospital, he had compromised – he got to wear casual clothes so he didn't _feel _like he was in hospital. Eiji had always _hated _hospitals. All he ever got was bad news. But he still had to wear the wrist band saying his identity though; just in case something happened.

"Ah, Kikumaru-kun," Rikkai Dai's Yukimura Seiichi smiled. "What brings you here?"

Eiji smiled. "Call me Eiji, please," he insisted. "I heard you were in hospital and I was roaming around, so I decided to visit. Here." Eiji handed him the card and he was rewarded with a kind smile.

"Thank you, Eiji-kun," Yukimura replied. "I never pictured you to be the kind of person to hang around hospitals."

Eiji laughed a little. "No, no, I hate hospitals. I'm kind of forced to be here, nya. It's that or I'm suspended from school," he said with a hint of a joke in his voice. Yukimura didn't get it. Eiji sat down in a chair placed in the same position his brother usually sat in when he visited Eiji. "So what have you got again?"

"It's like Guillian-Barre Syndrome, but it's a little different," Yukimura explained. "I have to decide between dying or having surgery and still possibly dying."

Eiji's expression got a little lower. "You're better off than others," he said. "Some don't have any cure at all."

Yukimura chuckled a little. "That's true," he said. "If I get the surgery, then they say there's a minimal, but possible chance I'll be able to play in Nationals."

Eiji smiled, but his eyes were not anywhere near as bright. "That's great, nya!" Eiji exclaimed. "That means you can help Rikkai try and beat Seigaku."

Yukimura smiled. "What do you mean 'try'?"

"Well, Seigaku are going to win, of course," Eiji said with a slight wink.

Yukimura laughed. "I see. We won't be going easy on you, then," he replied. He held his head and wiped his blue hair out of his eyes. "Why are you being forced here, Eiji-kun? Hospitals are dreadful places."

Eiji chuckled. "I know what you mean," he said with a smile. "I've never liked them. My family have always been really healthy but whenever someone comes to one, they always get told bad news. Usually that they are going to die."

Yukimura nodded. "Doctors are pessimists at heart, aren't they?" he said. "Are you visiting a grandparent or something?"

Eiji shook his head. "No, I'm here for me," he admitted. "Not that I like admitting that."

Yukimura was puzzled. If he put two and two together, that meant Eiji was really sick and he was admitted into hospital. Something he didn't really notice about Eiji. But when he looked him over a little more critically, he could see how thin Eiji was, the pale, lifeless colour of his skin and the slight bags under Eiji's eyes. The only thing that kept Eiji looking healthy was his bright red hair and his eyes.

"Here for… you?" Yukimura asked. "What are you sick with?"

Eiji shrugged. "Damn doctors can't tell me." There was a hint of anger in his voice. "But they can tell me that I shouldn't be playing tennis."

"Oh, _that _speech. I get it regularly. You learn to ignore it," Yukimura chuckled. "What's wrong with you?"

Eiji didn't usually feel comfortable telling people about how sick he was. But since Yukimura had shared with him, he would share back. It was an extra person to share the burden. Besides, he could then visit Yukimura and not be asked every day. "My body… is shutting down. It started in my lungs when I was little. I was five when I was first told I was going to die."

Yukimura listened intently. It wasn't often he heard stories of people his own age going through harder times than he was. He had the choice to die or live. Eiji had no choice in the matter – he was just going to die. To have known he was going to die from five years old, it would have been painful. Even if the family had just been given some condolences by knowing what disease he did have, it would have lightened the load.

"If I'm not there when you play Seigaku," Eiji started. "Please make sure they play their best. I don't want the thought of my death or me dying holding them back."

Yukimura found it difficult to understand. Telling his team had meant they could share the burden together. But then again, he had heard rumours Seigaku was rather divided at the moment – Eiji had explained it was because he was sick and most people didn't believe him because he couldn't say what he really had – and so even if he told them all what he had, he would still be accused and ridiculed.

"Eiji-kun, do you mind if you visit me tomorrow too?" Yukimura asked. "They won't let me out of the room and it's lonely when none of the others can visit me."

Eiji smiled. "Sure, nya."

_-_Six Hundred and Sixty Three Paper Cranes_-_

(A.N: This has been ready for a few days, but I was too lazy to update. Actually, the whole rest of the fic is ready but I'm not going to post it all at once. =P There's about two more chapters left, depending on how I break it up. I hope you'll continue to review and stay with me to the end!

Asami-chann)


	6. EightHundred and NinetyEight Paper Crane

"Kikumaru-kun," Rika said quietly. She could see he was unbelievably pale and he was panting. "Are you alright?"

Eiji looked up at Rika. She had avoided him for weeks now, eye contact making everything twice as awkward. But, as much as he hated the attention she gave him, he missed it; the caring 'are you okay?' and gentle 'take care' every time they spoke. He had grown attached to her.

"Rika chan," Eiji breathed. "That day at the park… what did I say?" He looked at the sky from the empty rooftop in thought.

Rika was stunned. "What-"

"I can't remember, as much as I try. I want to know what I did wrong," Eiji insisted. His hand slowly curved into fists. He had even been through everything with Yukimura numerous times over. He was determined to remember. Yukimura had been kind enough to try and help out.

Rika went quiet. "You told me you were scared. That you can't sleep at night and you don't want anyone to pity you."

"Then why did I yell, Rika-chan? I don't know what I did and I need to know."

Rika took a deep breath. She couldn't explain it in words again. It would be too much. Instead, she gently pressed her lips to his; actions spoke louder than any words she could say, but she would say them anyway. "I told you that I like you. You thought it was a pity and didn't want to be pitied. So you yelled at me that you hate me." Rika's eyes began to well up. But she refused to cry. She felt like she was a real cry baby.

Eiji went silent. "Rika-chan, I… I'm sorry. I don't hate you. But I don't want to hurt you anymore than I already have to. Any single day and I could die. I don't want to hurt you when I do."

Rika wiped her eyes. She was crying and she knew it. "Kikuma-"

"Eiji, Rika-chan, it's Eiji," he smiled, wiping tears from her cheeks.

"Eiji-kun, I want to be with you… even if you're going to die. Eiji-kun, I like you. That's it," she choked between sobs. "I know you're going through a hard time right now, but I love you and I want to help you."

Eiji pulled her close, hugging her tightly as tears began to escape his own eyes. "It's not fair on you, nya."

Rika chuckled as she returned his embrace. "Life's not fair, Eiji-kun," she replied.

Eiji wiped his eyes as his head rested on her shoulder. "Do you really want to be with me, even when I can't breathe without the help of a machine?"

"I do, Eiji-kun," Rika replied. "I really want to be by your side."

-Seven hundred and Twenty Four Paper Cranes-

"Eiji-senpai, I'm jealous," Momo chuckled. "You got yourself a girlfriend. She's kinda cute too."

That sparked attention through the tennis clubs. Someone had a girlfriend? That was unbelievable. Didn't girls still have germs? Okay, scrap that thought. They knew girls didn't have germs but no one really got a girlfriend. It just… didn't happen.

"That's great, Eiji! Congratulations," Oishi beamed at his doubles partner. "What's her name?"

Eiji smiled, holding his racket over his shoulders. "Thanks, nya. She's Kobayashi Rika from Fuji and my homeroom class."

Fuji wasn't sure how to react; betrayed, jealous or happy for his best friend. He had already warned Rika to stay away from Eiji but obviously had yet to learn her lesson.

"Echizen! Eiji senpai got a girlfriend," Momo smiled, draping his arm over the freshman's shoulders. "You're jealous too, aren't you?"

"Mada mada dane, Momo-senpai."

"Oi! That guy…" Momo cursed as Ryoma decided to go get out another racket. He wore the strings out quickly, these days. But training for the quarter finals was tough. It wasn't called Nationals for nothing.

Eiji smiled. "Hoi, hoi! Fuji, Fuji! Why're you looking down?" Eiji asked as he stood beside his best friend.

Fuji smiled in return. "Nothing. I'm just thinking about how tough the next matches will be," he lied. "Do you want to come over after you've seen Dr Kobayashi? The new math task looks hard."

"Su-" Eiji stopped. "How did you know I have to see Dr Kobayashi today?" Eiji's voice was quieter now.

Fuji looked at Eiji. "Shou and Yumiko have known each other forever. They tell each other everything and Yumiko isn't all that quiet when she's on the phone," he explained. "So I know _everything._"

Eiji wanted to punch his brother so hard his entire face would be purple for the next month. "Why didn't you tell me you knew?" he asked.

"Because you never asked and never told me, your best friend, anything. It was between you and Kobayashi-chan."

Eiji felt guilty. All the lies he had told; he regretted them but he couldn't tell anyone else the truth. Not anymore.

-Seven Hundred and Forty Two Paper Cranes-

Eiji sat on the end of Fuji's bed as he looked at the complicated math homework. He was so glad Fuji had thought of doing it together. He would have been stuck on this for hours if Fuji wasn't helping. What was it? Two minds are better than one? Well, it was true.

"Eiji, your kanji are really messy," Fuji commented. He pointed at one in particular. "Is that meant to be 'suu'?" (Suu means number and is the first character of mathematics)

Eiji smiled. "I know. It's so messy," he admitted with a laugh. "Nakayama-sensei complained just last week."

Fuji's face straightened. "Eiji."

"Hm?" Eiji asked with mild interest. He had the tip of his pen in his mouth while he tried to think through the math question.

"How long is it before you're meant to die?"

Eiji's smile disappeared. "By the end of this week, supposedly, I won't be able to write anymore or use chopsticks. I probably won't be able to hold tennis racket either."

Fuji's face was dull. "So you won't make it to Nationals?"

Eiji was very grim. "According to Dr Kobayashi, I'll be dead before then."

Fuji didn't like asking these types of questions. They were… depressing. He thought of something to lighten the mood. "Did Kobayashi-chan ask you or did you ask her?" he asked. He would be less annoyed at Rika if Eiji asked her.

Eiji grinned a little. "It sort of happened… I was asking her what I said that day at the park."

"You still can't remember?" Fuji asked. "Go on."

Eiji nodded. "She told me how I told her I was scared of dying – which I am – and being pitied because I'm sick. Then she told me she liked me and I yelled at her for liking me.

Fuji still needed to know. "Oh. I think I knew that already. Saa, what happened next?"

Eiji smiled. "I told her I didn't want to hurt anyone any more than I already have. That and I'm meant to die any day," Eiji said. "Then there was something else and eventually asked if she really wanted to be with me, even if I could die any moment. You can guess her answer, nya."

That did not help Fuji at all. Rika brought it up but Eiji asked. He was exactly where he started.

Eiji looked at Fuji. "Why don't you like Rika-chan, Fuji? She's done noth-"

"Because you were happy before she found out. Since she found out, you've changed. You don't talk to me much anymore. She's everywhere you go. I guess I'm jealous of how close you've become with her and how we've grown apart. I blame it all on her, it's just ea-"

Eiji grabbed Fuji's arm. "Fuji, you're my best friend. You know that right?"

"But you couldn't tell me," Fuji retorted. "You couldn't trust me in knowing my best friend is going to die."

"I'm sorry. I was too busy thinking of myself. I didn't want others to pity me and forgot about how lies hurt other people. I was being selfish again," Eiji apologised. "Now you know, I won't be afraid of talking to you in case I spill everything because you know now."

Fuji nodded. "Saa, best friends?"

"Even beyond the day I die!" Eiji replied as he usually did. The joke had become more literal now.

Fuji smiled as he looked back down at the homework. "Do you know the answer… "

-Seven Hundred and Sixty Nine Paper Cranes-

"Eiji… you're very lucky to have come this far," Dr Kobayashi commented. "We are baffled by your ability to stay alive."

Eiji nodded. "Thanks… I think."

Dr Kobayashi looked at his notes. "It's not medically possible… your body has deteriorated but in exchange, the functions of your brain have gotten better over the last few weeks. It wasn't obvious at the start of the month – it was about as stable as you were at the time – but it has definitely improved. Your emotion and memory are fairly stable now."

"This could mean he'll get better, like he did last time, right?" Shou asked. He attended every visit to the hospital.

Dr Kobayashi shrugged. "There is a possibility, but it's not certain. As I previously said: his body is still in a stage of deterioration. We cannot be too sure."

Eiji smiled. "Hoi, hoi! That means I can play the rest of Nationals, right?"

"It isn't our desired option, but if you take care of yourself, we cannot stop you," Dr Kobayashi replied. "We've been trying to stop you for a long time."

Eiji smiled as he jumped to his feet. "Nya, hoi!"

It was the first good news they had had in a long time.

-Eight Hundred and Five Paper Cranes-

"Where is he?" Oishi asked, looking for his doubles partner. Of course, it was the day of the final matches that both Eiji and Ryoma would run late on.

"Oishi-kun!" A female voice called, running up to Oishi.

"Ah, Rika-chan," Oishi smiled. "Have you seen Eiji?"

Rika smiled. "He's this way," she said. She looked out of breath. She began to run again, leading the way.

-Eight Hundred and Seventy Seven Paper Cranes-

Eiji sighed, pulling the oxygen mask away from his face. "So much for getting better," he said, hanging the mask on the tank of pressurised air. "I'll be leaving now."

"Be careful, Kikumaru-kun."

Eiji closed the door behind himself. "Eiji!" Rika's voice called as he began to walk around the stadium. He was running a little late but not too late. Registration still had twenty minutes.

"Ah, Rika-chan, Oishi," he said, rather surprised. Wasn't Rika going to get Fuji? It didn't matter.

"Eiji, where have you been?" Oishi almost exclaimed.

"Ah, sorry, nya! I got her really early so I took a look around. I lost track of time though," Eiji lied skilfully. "You ready to win the Nationals and become the best junior high doubles players in Japan, nya?"

-Eight Hundred and Ninety Eight Paper Cranes-

(A.N: This may feel like it jumps a bit, but there's the next chapter and an epilogue sort of chapter. As I mentioned earlier, it was originally a one shot so it's very choppy.

Please review!!)


	7. One Thousand Paper Cranes

Gently, Setsu rolled over in his sleep. He heard quiet noises coming from Eiji, but they seemed to be just him a little restless in his sleep. It was probably from all the extra sugar he had eaten in the celebrations for winning the Nationals. Seigaku had won of course, which made Eiji and Oishi the best junior high doubles team in Japan. That was almost a week ago.

"Setsu-nii," Eiji groaned slightly. Setsu waited for Eiji to continue, but he didn't. Eiji sounded as if he rolled over and was then still again.

Setsu closed his eyes and pulled his cover up. His eyes closed over what seemed like a second but his eyes opened two hours later. This time he jumped out of bed. He couldn't hear Eiji breath like he normally did.

"Eiji, you okay?" Setsu asked, shaking his brother's shoulder. There was no response. He shook Eiji again and still no response. Setsu really could not hear or feel a single breath. Eiji's skin was cold to touch.

Setsu turned on the light, taking a look at Eiji's pale face and blue lips. It suddenly became clear: Eiji was dead.

Setsu slammed open his door and banged on the walls as he ran down the stairs. It was quite a racket. Hige was disturbed by the sound and was barking loudly.

"What's going on?" Loud voices asked as they emerged from their rooms.

"Setsu! Get back to bed," his grandfather sighed.

Setsu held the phone in his hand as he began to choke. Tears were starting, his fears so strong he couldn't help but cry. "Eiji… he's-"

Shou was in Eiji and Setsu's room in seconds. Setsu's words were true. "Call an ambulance already!" Shou shouted, gently manoeuvring Eiji from his bed. Eiji was completely limp and freezing cold. The life that previously filled his face was gone.

A few minutes passed and the ambulance arrived. They looked very grave. "We're so sorry, but he's long gone. He's probably been dead for an hour or so."

"Can't you do anything?" The Kikumaru mother asked.

The paramedics shook their heads. "There is nothing we can do to bring back your son."

-Nine Hundred and Four Paper Cranes-

Dr Kobayashi answered his phone. He was about to leave for the hospital when they called him. "Hello? Dr Kobayashi speaking." The mood suddenly dropped. "I see. Thank you. I'm leaving now."

Nurse Kobayashi looked at her husband carefully. "What happened?" she asked, deciphering his expression with ease.

Dr Kobayashi sighed. "Eiji-kun died overnight," he said quietly. He had been Eiji's doctor for almost ten years. Slowly, the stubborn red head had grown on him.

"Do they know what happened yet?" Nurse Kobayashi asked. Her husband shook his head.

"They think his lung or throat collapsed. Either that or his heart had stopped beating," he breathed.

"He really died?" Rika asked, gripping onto the doorway.

Dr Kobayashi nodded. "Rika, he did. I'm sorry."

Rika took a deep breath. "I'm going to visit Fuji-kun," she said, tying up her hair rather quickly.

Nurse Kobayashi sighed. "Rika, you'll see him at school. Just wait and you can come with me." The front door shut and Nurse Kobayashi sighed.

-Nine Hundred and Seventeen Paper Cranes-

Fuji opened the door, rather surprised to see Rika of all people there. Fuji had decided to be neutral of feelings toward Rika after all people had done for her. Rika was overly-forgiving; Fuji often joked about her forgiving a murderer as he killed her or a thief as he stole a prized possession and never gave it back.

He couldn't see her face, her hair completely masking her expression as her head hung low. Fuji gently held her chin and lifted her head. She was crying. "Kobayashi-chan, what happened?"

Rika wiped her eyes. "Eiji… he died during the night."

Fuji froze. "He's dead?" he asked.

Rika nodded as she began to cry again. She tried to hold them back as she stepped up and leaned gently on Fuji's chest. Normally she would be embarrassed but she was also in hysterical tears.

"Shou won't stop calling me I told him that I'm busy tonight," Yumiko comment. "Syuusuke, who is this?"

Fuji snapped back to reality. "Ah, neechan, this is Kobayashi Rika, Eiji's girlfriend."

Yumiko looked at the teen girl. "She's kinda cute. Eiji's very lucky," she smiled. "Invite her in."

As Fuji gently pulled away, Yumiko caught a glance of Rika's face, tears gently soaking them through. "Eiji died overnight, neechan. That's why she's here," Fuji explained.

Yumiko suddenly realised why Shou was continuously calling her. She felt so selfish. She had only thought of herself. "Come in, come in. Sit down and I'll get you some tea."

-Nine Hundred and Thirty Two paper Cranes-

It was certainly an odd sightseeing Rika and Fuji near each other. Everyone was well aware that the only reason the pair even talked to each other was because of Eiji. Fuji was just not the type of person to get along with an overly-forgiving, nervous person. It seemed Rika couldn't speak confidently unless they were close friends; something she and Fuji definitely were not and Fuji wouldn't go out of his way to get close to someone who couldn't speak with him.

"Fuji-kun, Kobayashi-san, it's nice to see you both getting along today," Nakamura-sensei smiled.

Fuji nodded and Rika blushed a little. She turned up at his house and taken advantage of their hospitality. She was the only one crying while those who had known Eiji for much longer than she had held back tears.

"Thank you," Fuji smiled as he looked at Rika. "Let's go, Kobayashi-chan."

Rika nodded, following almost silently. "Fuji-kun," she almost whispered. "Why are you being so kind to me? I know you don't like me."

Fuji opened his eyes. "Because it's easier not having to think about what you're saying. Until the news about Eiji is announced, I'm afraid I might say something without thinking."

Rika nodded. She should have figured that out. It was convenient for him so it had to happen. "I… I see," she whispered. The thought of Eiji sparked tears again.

Fuji was confused. Girls were strange creatures. "Did I say something wrong?" he asked.

"Not at all," Rika choked out. "I don't think I'll make it through class today."

Fuji pulled Rika in closer. He didn't like seeing girls cry and had been taught by his mother and sister to always be nice and help a crying girl. If his father intervened… well, he didn't. His father knew better than to try. "It'll be okay," he repeated from memory of how to comfort someone. "You can get through this."

-Nine Hundred and Sixty One Paper Cranes-

Rika waited patiently for Fuji after tennis practice. Eiji's death still hadn't been announced. The school had no idea that he had died.

"Rika," Nurse Kobayashi said. "Go home. Yumiko-san is going to pick up Fuji-kun, I'm sure of it."

Rika shook her head. "I'm okay," she said. "Why am I the only person crying?"

Her mother sat down next to her. "Eiji-kun's family are all crying, Rika. But your father, Fuji-kun and I have been holding back tears for a while. Fuji-kun has to lie to his team and we, your father and I, have to be professional. You're free to cry without worrying. Could you imagine Fuji-kun crying? It'd ruin his reputation too."

Rika nodded. "So I'm not the only one who wants to cry?"

Nurse Kobayashi shook her head. "Later, we can cry together, okay?"

Rika nodded as her mother stood up, dusted off her clothes and left. Shortly after, the tennis team slowly came passed. "Ah, Rika-san," Oishi smiled. "Do you know where Eiji is today?"

Rika shook her head. "I don't know, sorry," she lied.

Oishi nodded. "Take care!" he dismissed as he left. The others had continued walking anyway.

Rika held back tears until she couldn't see anyone else. Fuji was nowhere to be seen. "Ah, Tezuka-kun!" she said as she quickly wiped her eyes.

Tezuka stopped. "Is something the matter, Kobayashi-san?"

Rika shook her head. "No. It's okay. Have you seen Fuji-kun?"

Tezuka was in thought for a moment. "I think he's still in the change rooms."

"Th-thank you, Tezuka-kun," she said, her voice beginning to waver again.

Tezuka, if it were possible, frowned. "What happened to Eiji, Kobayashi-san?" he asked.

"What? No-nothing," she said defensively. Her voice cracked. She knew that everything became clear to Tezuka.

"Is he alright?" Tezuka asked. He knew he had gotten his guess right by her answer. Eiji was his teammate and Tezuka was captain – he should know exactly what is going on with the members of his team so he could deal with it the right way.

"He… he died. He's been sick for a long time and… he's finally not in any pain," she began to sob.

Tezuka seemed calm as per usual. "I see. Well then, please accept my condolences. If you see his family, please pa-" Tezuka paused. "Does Fuji know?"

Rika had never seen Tezuka like this. "Y-yes. He found out this morning when I went to his house. Why-?"

"Come with me," Tezuka said as he offered his hand. Rika took it as Tezuka walked briskly to the change rooms. Tezuka was speeding up until they were running. He was well aware holding onto Rika was slowing himself down, but he wanted her to come along. He didn't share the same bond with Eiji as Rika and Fuji did.

The change rooms were silent. They could hear the running water in the showers through the walls. Tezuka let go of Rika's hand as he grabbed a towel. "Wait here."

Tezuka opened the door to hear Rika behind him. "My parents both work in a hospital. I've seen more than you think. I've seen blood covered organs," Rika explained. "I can handle a fourteen year old."

Tezuka nodded. "Fuji, are you in here?" There was still one shower running and the sound of choked sobs.

Fuji sat, still in his tennis uniform, under the running shower, eyes open and knees curled up into his chest. He was soaked through as his bottom lip bled from bitting it so hard to restrain his tears.

"Fuji," Tezuka sighed with mild relief as he turned off the tap and wrapped Fuji in the towel. The water had been cold; Fuji was shivering.

"It's okay," Rika said with surprising confidence in her voice. "It's okay now, I promise."

Tezuka looked at her. He had always known her as the shy girl in class 3-6. She didn't speak much, yet alone confidently.

They helped Fuji to his feet and helped him out of the showers into the change rooms. Gently, while Tezuka held him up, Rika changed his clothes. It was a time of seriousness, so all immature thoughts were gone from her head.

"Fuji-kun, it's alright now. We're here for you," she continued to say as she took the towel and dried his dripping hair.

"Tezuka-kun, he has a fever," Rika said with slight alarm. Sitting under freezing cold water in his clothes was the worst idea Fuji could have had.

Tezuka checked Fuji's temperature against his own. It wasn't too high, but certainly was more than usual. "We'll get Fuji-san to take him to see a doctor later. For now, he needs to get home."

-Nine Hundred and Seventy Five Paper Cranes-

"Good morning class," Nakamura-sensei greeted as he stood up the front of the class. The class greeted him back and were seated as he pulled out chalk from his bag. "Today, we're not doing geography as your timetable does say."

There were the sounds of chalk on the board continued as the students tried to read it. "Are Kobayashi-san and Fuji-kun here today?" Nakamura-sensei asked as he finished the kanji off.

There was no reply so he turned around, uncovering the rest of the kanji. "I see they are not. Well, I suppose that's a good thing."

"Memorial for Kikumaru Eiji's… funeral?" one girl spoke allowed. "Funeral? What are you talking about?"

Nakamura-sensei nodded. "The other night, Kikumaru-kun died. It seems that Kikumaru-kun was very ill for a very long time," he began to explain. "Your attitude toward Kikumaru-kun was atrocious. Every single one of you treated him like he was trash." Nakamura-sensei's voice was raising.

"But, sensei, we didn-"

"That doesn't matter. Every single one of you thought that Kikumaru-kun was lying while he was dying all by himself," Nakamura-sensei said. "I hope you all go out and apologise to those who stood up for Kikumaru-kun considering they were strong enough to stay by his side."

The class went quiet as the door opened slowly. "Sensei, sorry I'm late," Rika apologised quietly. Everyone was silent as their heads hung down in shame. "Did I miss something?" she asked as she noticed the class were all rather lifeless.

"I was just telling the class about how we're making up a memorial for Kikumaru-kun's funeral," Nakamura-sensei explained as Rika sat down in her seat. Rika nodded.

"So, what's an idea to celebrate the life of Kikumaru-kun?" Nakamura-sensei asked.

"It has to involve tennis," someone mentioned. Ideas eventually flowed from the class, Rika unable to even open her mouth. For the class to be this compassionate for Eiji… Nakamura-sensei had to have said something.

Rika was in shock. The unison of her class had been something she hadn't seen in a very long time.

-Nine Hundred and Ninety One Paper Cranes-

"How do you explain 'Kikumaru Eiji'? Well, to start, he was a relative, younger brother, son, grandson, nephew, cousin, friend, acquaintance and inspiring to many. To Rika, a lover and to me… Eiji was my best friend," Fuji began to speak, his hands curling around tightly. He looked up. "For him, I'd do anything. I did anything I could, but sometimes it was what I thought was best and really wasn't that way at all. I made assumptions and get very protective of Eiji. On more than one occasion, I got very carried away." Fuji chuckled a little. "I'm very sorry again, Rika-chan."

"Eiji was optimistic to most. He didn't let anything bring him down when things got hard. The ability to fall in his struggles but then rise again – it's to be admired. He cared strongly for his friends and family, as few as they became over time. He was loyal and out to protect everyone from the pain he was going through. His face perfectly masked his misfortune to the point I forgot just how unwell he was on many occasions."

Fuji took a deep breath. "The thing most people didn't realise about Eiji is just how much he hid from those he protected. Eiji, without the support of his family and friends, would have given up. He often considered it, but he knew he had to do it. Tennis was his dream, as everyone who met him knew. Every time he was told he was going to die before he got to Nationals, he would deny it, but as time went on, he was trying to convince himself that he wasn't going to die, rather than everyone else."

If I were to picture where Eiji was happiest, he would be on a tennis court. He lived to play in the National Tournament to become the number-one middle school doubles pair in Japan with Oishi Syuuichirou. He had said if he lived just to play that match, he could die completely fulfilled. I laughed and asked about his other dreams. He simply replied, 'I've come this far to be in that match. Every second after that match is a gift.' Eiji matured much faster than any of us. To accept that he was going to die – not enough people gave him credit for his maturity."

Eiji was fourteen, turning fifteen this November. He loved his family, his friends, and most of all, Rika who supported him when I couldn't. I must admit, I was a little jealous that she could help him for longer than I could."

'Eiji' is a name of a true fighter – a winner – who should be admired. Eiji cannot be described in just words. No, Eiji was and is more than that," Fuji concluded, taking a deep breath and looking around at everyone. He could see everyone in the room staring at him at that exact moment; his eyes open and yet soft, not sharp like they usually were when they were open.

"Thank you, Fuji-kun," Shou said as he put one hand on his shoulder. "Now we have Eiji's class, 3-6, which both Fuji-kun and Rika-san are a part of."

The presentation was beautiful. It carefully captured what Eiji really was to the class 3-6. The video had many pictures of Eiji with smiles on his face, some of the pictures with a much less seen side of Eiji. It was quite obvious that the artistic tensai had taken them. No one else had that skill and mastery of a camera to not be noticed by Eiji.

The students of the class who were part of the music club played an accompaniment while the students of the class recalled their strongest memory of Eiji.

"I remember, second day of school, some of the seniors were pulling on my hair and kicking me because I didn't have the right socks on. They immediately called me poor because they thought I couldn't afford the socks when I really did have them, I just put on my middle school socks by accident. Kikumaru-kun came and defended me. I thought he was strange at first, knowing how to fix my hair so it wasn't all frizzy and messy. Then I found out he had two older sisters who liked to dress him up because he was the littlest of the five. When his older brother picked him up, I just realised the bond their family had and I went home to my little sister and began to try and tell her stories. I didn't want to fight with her; I wanted to be as close as Kikumaru-kun was to his family."

Yumiko smiled at Shou. She gently nudged him as he folded his arms. "There's more," she said as she looked forward. Strung together were paper cranes, many of different colours, but a whole section of cranes in black and white.

"These are a combination of Eiji's and other paper cranes we have made with Eiji in mind. There are nine-hundred and four cranes by Eiji himself and the remaining cranes are by those who know Eiji. Each one is a picture that reminded them of Eiji and a message on the back that has been folded as well. There are nine-hundred and ninety-one cranes all connected together so far. We want the Kikumaru Family to take part in our chain so we can wish for Eiji to now be at peace and for Eiji to never fade from our memories," Nakamura-sensei said as the class held the chains out for everyone to see. "Kobayashi-san, Fuji-kun, can you please give the members of Kikumaru-kun's family some paper and a pen?"

Fuji and Rika nodded, handing the pieces of paper to the family members. Each had a different portrait of the Kikumaru family. There were tears in the room while the members of the Kikumaru family wrote messages on the back and carefully folded their cranes.

"Shou, wait," Yumiko said just as Shou was starting to fold his crane. Shou stopped as he looked at Yumiko. "I forgot to write something on mine. Do you mind if I?"

Shou handed Yumiko his crane as she quickly scribbled a note down on the bottom of the piece of paper then handed it back. Shou read it and he looked at Yumiko. "What's this?"

Yumiko smiled. "I'll explain later. Quick, quick," she said and Shou folded up the crane. He handed it back to Fuji. Fuji gave his sister a look as she poked out her tongue at her brother. It seemed Fuji got it more than Shou did.

The service concluded and Shou stood up the front again. His voice was wavering a little, but he held on for as long as he could. "We're so thankful, everyone. I've been so afraid of what would happen to Eiji after he died ever since the day we found out – I was seventeen years old at the time and was constantly told I shouldn't worry about what might happen but what is happening. I'm no longer afraid because I know he'll live on inside of all of us. Thank you for everything!" Shou bowed, tears beginning to well up in the corners of his eyes.

Slowly, the room began to move. There were a lot of tears around the room. Shou wiped his eyes as Yumiko wrapped her arms around him. Fuji wasn't lying when he said they had known each other for a long time. Yumiko had started being tutored by Shou in her first year of middle school. That was about eleven years ago. He had continued to tutor her all the way through to the end of high school. They never stopped speaking to each other in all those years.

"Come on. Eiji wouldn't like to see you cry, would he?" Yumiko said. Shou shook his head.

Shou wiped his eyes again and took a deep breath. He'd stop crying now. "What did you mean on the bottom of the crane?"

Yumiko smiled. "Saa… who knows."

Fuji stepped up to Rika, wiping the tears from her face. "You look better with a smile, Rika-chan," he smiled.

"Since when did you decide to call me 'Rika-chan', Fuji-kun?" she asked with a small laugh.

Fuji nodded. "That's true," he chuckled. "I don't know. Since I think Eiji would like it if we get along."

Rika chuckled. "I think he knew we were always going to get along some day," she said with a smile. Since Eiji had died and they had spent more time with each other, they had become more comfortable with each other. Somehow, the crying had only brought them even closer.

Fuji took Rika's hand as they looked at the pictures of Eiji still playing as a sign of comfort. They would do their best not to cry as they said their final goodbyes to the Eiji of that world. They would always thank Eiji for being around. Because Eiji had given them a true friend they never realised they had and Eiji had shown them that in the darkest times, there was still hope for the future.

Eiji would never be forgotten.

-One Thousand Paper Cranes-

(A.N:Please review! The Epilogue sort of chapter will be up tomorrow!)


	8. Epilogue

_**Twelve years later**_

Tanaka Rika sighed, holding her clipboard to her chest. "Koji, what's going on?" she asked as she stood and watched her husband stare through the window to her office. He was trying to see through the blinds.

"Ah! Rika!" he jumped. He was from Osaka and had a really strong accent. "Some guy is in your office."

Rika opened her door. "Fuji-kun!" she almost screamed as she smiled and dropped her notebook. She hugged him tightly. "Oh, I missed you!"

Fuji smiled as he returned her embrace. "I missed you too, Rika-chan," he said with a slight chuckle. "A clinical neuropsychologist, huh?"

Rika pulled back and gently nudged him. "I've done more courses than that. It's take a long time to get this far, Mr. Photographer," she said as she looked at all of her awards. "I'm half way to becoming a psychiatrist, you know. I am a doctor already too."

Fuji smiled. "Good. Then when I get attacked, you can try bringing me back to life."

"Don't even joke about things like that!" Rika exclaimed. She looked rather fine, but her expression had changed a little.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Fuji instantly apologised. He had obviously taken the joke too far. "I know you don't like jokes about death. I shouldn't have even-"

"It's okay," Rika said with a small smile. "It's been a long time. I really shouldn't be like this still."

Fuji pulled her into a hug. "It's okay," he said comfortingly. "I miss him too." He started to smile, ready to change the subject. "You have to meet Kiyori."

Rika smiled. "Sure. How old is she now?" she asked as Fuji took her hand and pulled her around to behind her own desk.

Fuji smirked. "Kiyori!" Fuji called and a tiny girl popped up from behind Rika's desk. She had light brown hair and blue eyes.

Kiyori ran over and hugged Rika. "I missed you!" she said in fluent Irish. Her mother was from Ireland and they had lived there for most of her life, so it wasn't a surprise.

"In Japanese, Kiyori," Fuji corrected. Kiyori was definitely better with Irish, but spoke some Japanese and very little English.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I missed you!" she repeated but in Japanese this time. Rika smiled as she picked up the small girl.

"How old are you now, Kiyori-chan?" Rika asked.

Kiyori looked at Fuji. She wasn't asked her age all that often. "Deadaí!" she cried out to Fuji in Irish. Fuji laughed a little and repeated the question to her how she would understand in Japanese. He had told her that she would be learning a lot more Japanese while they were in the country.

"Oh… four years old," she said with a smile. Rika smiled and congratulated her on saying it the right way. It would have been very hard for a four year old to try and learn two languages at the same time, considering she wasn't even completely fluent in one yet.

--

"There's my favourite niece!" Yumiko smiled as she picked up Kiyori. The Kikumaru house was full of people as per usual. This date was basically the biggest day of the entire year for the Kikumaru family; the day Eiji died all those years ago.

"Deadaí!" Kiyori called out to Fuji again. She hadn't understood anything but 'my' in that whole sentence Yumiko had said to her. Fuji chuckled. He was going to be doing a lot of translating; he knew it.

"She's so cute. Just like lil ol' Fujiko-chan," Momo noticed as he swung an arm around Fuji's shoulders with a laugh. "So why didn't your missus come?"

Fuji let out a small laugh. "Kayleigh and I aren't married, or plan to be," he said. "I thought you knew that."

Momo still looked confused. "Kayleigh" – he pronounced this more like 'Kayree' – "is Kiyori's mother, right? So are you going back to Ireland?"

Fuji shook his head. "Ireland was beautiful, very green and wonderful for my photos, but we're staying here for a while now. Or we plan to. Kayleigh just wanted Kiyori to be raised on at least a little of her mother's culture first. But Kayleigh is staying in Ireland. If Kiyori ever wants to go back to her mother, then I'll let her go."

Momo nodded. "I see," he said. He never thought he'd hear that from Fuji. He always imagined Fuji would be the kind of person that wanted to be a 'complete' family – one with a mother, father and child/children. It seemed like it wasn't to be.

"Syuusuke! Help!" Yumiko called as she tried to explain drinks to Kiyori. Obviously Kiyori hadn't gotten to this point when she was learning Japanese. Fuji explained yet again with what he had picked up in his time in Ireland. He wasn't too good with Irish, but he could speak with someone. English from school had helped since English was the second major language in the country.

Shou gently watched as people finished arriving. Rika, once again, came on her own. Shou didn't like her husband at all. Koji may have been quite the gentleman and made Rika happy, but he also didn't support her. Koji wouldn't come to one of the most important things in Rika's life even though they were married. Koji wouldn't let their son come either. 'Because they had never met Eiji' he had said, even though that was just an excuse.

"Rika-chan!" Shou shouted.

Rika smiled and bowed just a little. "Shou-kun, thank you for having me over once again this year."

Shou smiled. "Don't worry about it," he insisted.

Everyone got together and sat around the table set out for everyone – tables, rather – and waited silently to pray to Eiji's ashes. Kiyori sat between Fuji and Rika, Rika's face buried in her hands. Everyone could tell that she wasn't as happy as usual. She radiated that she was worried and stressed but no one wanted to confront her.

"Rika-chan," Fuji whispered quietly. Rika looked up at him. "What's going on?"

Rika looked at Fuji like he was an idiot. "We're waiting our tur-"

"No, you're stressed out and worried," he stated bluntly, but quietly. "What's going on?"

Rika took a deep breath. "I'm okay. Just a little over tired," she insisted. She saw it was her turn to go and 'see' Eiji.

Rika gently bowed her head as she sat on her knees and prayed to the Kikumaru family's shrine. She was trying to remain composed but everything was rushing through her head.

"Rika-chan," Fuji said as she got up. She looked definitely worse for wear. "Do you want me to call Koji-kun t pick you up?"

Rika shook her head. "I have to pick up some things from the hospital and check everything is alright."

"Ah, I see," Fuji said.

--

Rika held her books in her arms. She wanted to help people like Eiji, but she felt incompetent. She needed to get everything out of her systems.

She should have asked Fuji to come along.

"I see," Nurse Kobayashi said with a smile. "Well then, Keisuke-kun, I think Dr Kobayashi Rika knows a little about what's going on."

Rika looked at her aging mother as she brought in a red-headed boy. Rika couldn't believe her eyes. He was almost the spitting image of Eiji in his younger years. Redish hair and big, open eyes, a smile that you could see even when he was frowning and the inviting atmosphere around him that had attracted Rika all those years ago.

"Hello," Rika said quietly.

Nurse Kobayashi had a devious smile on her face. "This is Yamamoto Keisuke-kun. He has something similar to Eiji-kun."

Rika smiled. "I see. Well then, Keisuke-kun, it's very nice to meet you."

"Hi," said Keisuke dejectedly.

"Keisuke-kun wishes to find out about what he's likely to be going through over the next few months while we wait for his cure," the aged Nurse said with a smile. "It seems a cure has appeared over the last few years."

Rika nodded. "So I've heard as well. Come and sit, Keisuke-kun."

Keisuke sat in a chair, unsure of what to expect. "Am I going to die?"

Rika looked shocked. He wasn't even as old as Eiji was when he died, so it was strange this boy could have come to terms with him possibly dying. "We hope not. How old are you, Keisuke-kun?"

"Twelve," he replied.

"Do you play any sports?"

"A little bit of tennis but okaasan wants me to keep on learning piano. I like watching old tennis videos." Keisuke was starting to open up to Rika. He had a forming smile.

"Really?" Rika asked. "Who do you want to be like?"

Keisuke smiled. "There was a doubles player who went to my school. He was so cool. He did all these crazy moves. But he's not famous so you won't know him."

"I see. I know a lot of tennis players," Rika insisted. "I went to school with Tezuka Kunimitsu and Kaidoh Kaoru. Fuji Syuusuke was a good tennis player when I was in middle school, but he left tennis to pursue photography."

"Ah, then do you know Kikumaru Eiji? I really want to meet him but he disappeared from the tennis world after his middle school Nationals win."

Rika chuckled to herself. She should have guessed. "I did. He was my boyfriend at the time," she told Keisuke. "But he passed away shortly after those finals."

Keisuke went quiet. "Why did he die?"

Rika smiled just a little. "From what you have, but there was no cure when I was in middle school. He's the reason I became a doctor… well psychologist/psychiatrist. You're almost his spitting image."

Keisuke was pleased, hearing stories of his idol doing as he did. Re-incarnation was common in Buddhist religion and Shinto, so it was no surprise. Rika believed Keisuke was Eiji coming back to her. Rika smiled. She missed Eiji dearly, but Keisuke was in need of her now.

--

Fuji smiled as he held Kiyori in his arms. She was sleepy, but still awake.

"Deadaí," Kiyori said. "Rika-san is?"

Fuji smiled. "Eiji-jichan is watching over her," he said. "Don't worry. He will keep her safe."

"Like Mhamaí watches over me?" Kiyori asked.

Fuji nodded. "Just like how your Mhamaí watches over you," Fuji said with a small smile. Kayleigh… she really wasn't coming to Japan but for a different reason than what Fuji had told everyone; she had died in the last month of an accident. Fuji and Kayleigh weren't made to be mother and father together. Their views on parenting were too different to maintain a relationship together after Kiyori was born. Fuji was going to leave Kiyori with Kayleigh, as much as it would pain him, but Kayleigh passed away. Kayleigh knew Fuji would return to Japan so Kiyori got a Japanese name to always be a part of her Japanese side. Plans never worked.

"Do you miss Mhamaí, Deadaí?" Kiyori asked. "I miss Mhamaí a lot."

Fuji nodded. Sometimes he was too tired to get Kiyori to speak Japanese. "I miss her a lot too," he said with a slight crack in his voice. Kiyori wrapped her arms around Fuji's neck as he carried her home.

--

"This, Keisuke, is Kikumaru Eiji's grave," Rika smiled as she introduced 'Eiji' to Keisuke. "Eiji-kun, Keisuke-kun is a fan of your tennis. He wanted to meet you."

They never expected a reply. "My name is Yamamoto Keisuke and I play tennis for Seishun Gakuen. I'm not good enough to be a regular yet. I have what you had, Kikumaru-san. But there is a cure now."

Rika smiled. Every single day, Keisuke looked more and more like Eiji. He even spoke with the same tone like him. Well, without the nonsensical words and 'meow' but it was still almost the same.

"Fuji-kun as a daughter. I've told you about her. Did you meet her? She's half Irish, so she doesn't speak Japanese too well," Rika said with a slight laugh. "Can you imagine living with just your father? I'd miss my mother too much. But we know my dad has zero personality."

Keisuke and Rika spoke to Eiji's grave for a long time. It was almost dark when they got back to the hospital. Rika held open her office door for Keisuke to grab his new high-tech gaming device. Keisuke was going to go home, then school tomorrow, then he'd receive the cure that next afternoon.

"Fuji-kun," Rika said with surprise to see Fuji asleep in a chair in her office. Keisuke laughed as he grabbed his gaming device and said farewell.

Rika shook Fuji's shoulder. "Fuji-kun, wake up."

Fuji gently stirred. "Rika-chan," he muttered as he rubbed his eyes. "You're back."

"It's almost five thirty. Why are you here? Where is Kiyori?"

"So many questions," Fuji chuckled. "Yumiko is trying to teach Kiyori how to speak Japanese 'like a girl'. She sounds too much like me, supposedly, 'boku' and all."

Rika chuckled. "Well she has to learn from somewhere," Rika admitted.

Fuji's eyes were closed so Rika couldn't read his expressions with too much ease, but since his trip to Ireland, his expressions had changed. They changed a little after Eiji died but you could see in his face now that he was absolutely exhausted. Even with the bags under his eyes skilfully hidden, his expressions were weaker than before. His voice trembled when he spoke about the 'Emerald Isle' but no one had seemed to notice too much to worry.

"I'm so tired," Fuji sighed, his expressions totalling relaxing to nothingness as he rested his head against the wall. "I've almost had enough."

Rika was surprised. Fuji didn't speak openly often. He was the silent soldier continuing to battle. Even if he was 'under the weather' he would soldier on. "I'm sure a day care or Yumiko-san will watch Kiyori-chan. I'll even watch her if you need to work," she insisted. "I know a few patients that wouldn't mind having a girl with a bright smile visiting them. If you asked for help, a lot of people will offer in response."

Fuji nodded. "I know," he said like he had repeated it over and over to himself. Rika wouldn't have been surprised if he had. "But I have to stay strong for Kiyori and that's what's exhausting."

Rika didn't quite understand. Sure, she got the whole 'I'm the dad so I have to be strong for my child and never let them see me cry or down' but she always thought Fuji would be able to handle _that._ "If you can't cope, Kiyori's mother will take care of her, won't she? You could visit when you have the money."

"Kayleigh is dead," Fuji said harshly. He sounded angry. "Some drunk bastard hit her with a car."

Rika went very silent. It wasn't very often Fuji was annoyed, yet alone angry. But Fuji had always protected others, just like Eiji. "So you've been a single-father all on your own?"

Fuji held his head. "Kiyori was meant to stay in Ireland but Kayleigh died so I she had to come with me. I love Kiyori; she's my daughter. But I'm not cut out to be a father." Rika spotted tears welling in his eyes. She was right – he had held it all in for a long time. "It's not damn fair. First Eiji, then Kayleigh. I can't handle everyone around me dying."

Rika gently supported Fuji. "Eiji died and was released from all of his suffering. He still protects us though. He wouldn't want to see you cry."

"Saa…I'd be teased forever," Fuji chuckled. He suddenly looked serious. "The point of the matter is, you better not die or I'll bring you back to life and kill you myself."

Rika smiled as she and Fuji joked, telling stories of their old friend. Eiji may have been gone from sight, but not from mind. Never _ever _from mind.

"Rika, I have a photo album." Okay, Fuji was a photographer. Rika thought he had a _lot _of photo albums. Fuji pulled it from his bag out and gave it to Rika. "I want to ask the Kikumaru family if I can do a show on Eiji's life."

Rika smiled as she began to flick through the pages. "It'd be perfect."

--

Fuji took a deep breath as he watched all of the people walk in to check out his exhibit. He had seen most of the regulars – Tezuka had even flown in from Germany to see it. The room was filled with hustle and bustle. There was even word of a critic coming to see the show. Of course Inui had come up with that information so Fuji took it as fairly accurate. Everything had to be perfect.

"Daddy! When's the show going to start?" Kiyori asked in Japanese. Fuji smiled as he ruffled her hair just a little.

"Patience, Kiyori. It will be on soon," he said to her and she pouted.

"Everyone, the presentation is going to begin soon. This will be played every hour at the show, so feel free to come see it again," an announcer came over the loud speaker. "Please find a place in the room to watch and show your respect to the photographer who is present tonight, Fuji Syuusuke."

The room dropped dead silent after a few moments. Fuji even spotted the whole Kikumaru family, including his sister. He saw Rika enter with Keisuke, the boy from the hospital. She had been made to promise to bring him to the presentation. Her husband and son followed, a smile that Fuji had never seen before on Koji's face. Just that glimpse of a smile and a laugh instantly told Fuji why she had married Koji – he reminded her of Eiji in the subtlest ways.

"Fuji-san, you're on now," someone quietly whispered. Fuji nodded and stood up the front of the room.

With a deep breath, he looked around the room again. With so many that knew Eiji present, he had to say it perfectly. He opened the album with all of the original pictures in it. He didn't usually have the strength to even open it without missing his friend so dearly he'd have to fight back tears. But tonight, he was confident in himself to say it without crying a single tear. He slowly unfolded a note of paper and began to speak:

"Not it sight, but not out of mind.  
Your presence in person guided us,  
and your dreams shall continue to inspire many.  
For you lived for everyone around you  
when times were almost impossible  
Through thick and thin,  
You never gave anything but your best.

That's why, my friend,  
You may be gone from sight  
But you are not gone from my heart  
You shall not age like we do  
and you shall never fear what we must fear.  
Every day you shall live on deep inside of me  
and everyone you have met  
Giving them hope

Please never fear  
You will never be forgotten, my friend.

Please never give up  
You are always in my heart."

The paper folded over gently and slipped back into the original album, where it belonged. It had been there for a very long time and the album was beginning to get dusty. He blew the dust away as he took out a particular picture, his best friend smiling brightly.

Yes, he would always be by his side.


End file.
